


Just One Dream

by Crashdiamond



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Alex Comes Out (Julie and The Phantoms), Alex Has Anxiety (Julie and The Phantoms), Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Drama & Romance, Eventual Romance, F/M, Homophobia, Lesbian Flynn (Julie and The Phantoms), M/M, Not Canon Compliant, Protective Alex (Julie and The Phantoms), Protective Luke Patterson (Julie and The Phantoms), Slow Build, Slow Burn, Supernatural Elements, rough homelife
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:35:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 39,773
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27685025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crashdiamond/pseuds/Crashdiamond
Summary: Luke's parents don't understand his dream. Their dream. The boys would do anything for Sunset Curve to become legends.Julie didn't expect her life to change when she found a 17 year old boy hiding out in her mom's old studio. Like most normal people, she expected herself to scream, call the cops, find her dad, etc., but instead, she sat with him and listened. And they bonded like she's never bonded with anyone before.Eventually, not one, but three goofy teenage boys change her life.[Note: This universe takes place in 2020, the boys never died and never became ghosts. They're normal teenagers, mostly.]
Relationships: Alex & Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Alex/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Julie Molina/Luke Patterson, Julie Molina/Nick
Comments: 102
Kudos: 424





	1. Running

It’s dark out. The sun had set hours ago, covering the City of Angels with an almost-black night sky, spackled with clouds. There was a smell in the air that hinted that there would be a storm coming soon. A familiar sound of a door slamming replicated that of thunder booming, as a shaggy-haired brunette angrily shoved clothes and whatever else he owned into a beaten up backpack.

A middle aged woman with the same dark eyes and a similar button nose chased after him, begging with him to see reason. Tears were streaming down both of their faces. One felt misunderstood, the other felt agonizing heartbreak. The boy stormed out the door, knowing his mother would follow him and try to stop him. As he stepped outside, he felt a singular raindrop fall on his skin. He grabbed his bike, tightened the straps of his go-bag, and peddled down the driveway.

His mother called after him as he turned around one last time, humoring the idea of calling it quits and coming back inside. The look in her eyes was one that he knew would be permanently engraved in his memory. Headlights of an old sedan shined down the street as a car turned the corner, mentally pushing the boy to take off in the opposite direction, not looking back. The car parked on the curb and a man exited the vehicle, quickly rushing to the woman’s side, holding her as she cried.

Luke biked as fast as he could, not having a clue where he was headed. All he knew is that he had to get out of there. _They don’t understand_ , he thought. _This is my_ dream _! My_ calling _! The best thing that’s ever happened to me._

More droplets fell from the sky, and it eventually got to the point where his vision was impaired, and he wasn’t exactly sure where the separation was between the rain and the tears running down his face. He’d never admit that out loud, though. 

After frantically looking around for a few moments, his eyes landed on a yard filled with natural flora, but something in that yard that seemed to be a beacon of hope for him. A large shed. He rode up the driveway, towards the small building, coming to an eventual stop and walking his bike towards it. He had to be prepared for anything that could be in or around it, or worse, if anyone living in the house happened to be awake and looked outside.

He carefully laid his bike on the ground, far away enough to be out of sight, but close enough to be a scapegoat if he needed to make a run for it. Luke readjusted his bag on his back and looked around again. He tiptoed around the shed, peering into the windows. It was dark inside, and seemed unoccupied, but there were shapes resembling furniture and possibly a piano. Seeing the large instrument put a warm feeling in his chest that somehow let him know that this place was safe. A small smile spread across his face. 

There were large double doors on the front that opened like a barn, but that might give his presence away to anyone nearby. He settled for a side door, hoping that it was unlocked. He jiggled the doorknob, testing the mechanism to see if his wishful thinking paid off. 

“Damnit. Locked,” he whispered to himself.

He let out a frustrated sigh, and let his eyes wander. There were bushes and shrubs everywhere, the property seemed to be covered in foliage. If this wasn’t California, some might think that the yard had been abandoned. As he looked around, something glimmered in the minimal light of the evening and caught his eye: a potted plant. The pot seemed a little too close to the door for a coincidence. Upon closer inspection, Luke found that the shining thing was a key placed on top of the dirt.

He picked it up and crossed his fingers, plunging the key into the lock. He jiggled the knob once more, having to fight with it for a moment before it finally clicked.

“ _Ha!_ Finally. Shitty lock.”

Luke poked his head in, giving another look around. He went inside, but quickly turned around to return the key he used. Afterwards, he let out a content sigh and looked for any particular spot he might be able to crash on for the night. The air in the garage-like shed felt very stagnant and stale. It seems like no one had been out here for quite some time. He shrugged it off and made his way towards a couch that looked like it had definitely seen some good memories. He set his bag down and pulled his blanket and phone out. He clicked the screen on and saw that he had numerous missed calls from his parents, and a few texts from his friends, Reggie and Alex.

He swiped away the notifications for the missed calls and sent out a single text to both boys.

_I’m okay. Tell you guys everything later._

He turned his phone off and mindlessly chucked it onto the couch next to him.

  
  
He sighed and tried not to let his mind wander, which miserably failed. He wondered if his mom was still crying, and if his dad had offered to drive her around the neighboring parts of the city, in hopes of finding him. He wondered if they were going to call the police to try to bring him home. He shook his head at those thoughts, physically trying to get them out of his brain. He laid out his blanket and wadded up an old hoodie to use as a pillow. 

Luke felt like he should have been more cautious than sneaking onto someone’s property and sleeping in a shed, but he decided that would be a problem for tomorrow. Right now, he was exhausted and emotionally drained. The only thing he could fully care about was getting some rest.

\---

When he awoke, the sun was just beginning to take it's place above the world. He imagined it was probably 8am or something close. He groaned as he rolled over to face the rest of the shed, noticing a little twinge of pain in his neck. _This is what I get for sleeping on a random couch._ He threw his hands out around him and searched for his phone, stopping when he found the shut-off gadget.

He turned it back on to find one more missed call from his mom, and a large text to follow. He opted to read it later. He had a few more texts from the guys, all having something to do with his location.

_Where r u?_

_Dude you need to tell us where you're at._

_Yeah ur parents r worried sick bro_

_If you bail on us for the Orpheum, I will hunt you down myself._

He puffed out a laugh at Alex's empty threat, but he knew they'd be angry if he ditched them on one of the most important nights of their lives. Luke, Alex, and their friend Reggie have been best friends since childhood, and their biggest dream was, and still is, to be famous for their music. They started throwing around band ideas and learning to play instruments since they were all roughly 13. Luke has always been able to sing decently, so that played in his favor.

They've been playing bars, coffee shops and other local gigs since Alex got his learner's permit at age 15. Sunset Curve was known to few people since L.A. was a city _full_ of talent. There was a decent amount of competition to be dealt with to get spots for opening shows and popular venues, but somehow, the boys managed to cash in every favor they had and pull every string to be able to land an opening at the Orpheum. The legend around that venue claims that any band who plays there becomes legendary, if they weren't already.

He unlocked his phone to send a text to the boys.

_Meet me in the library in 20 minutes._   
  


He knew the guys would be suspicious. Luke hardly ever showed up to school, let alone being caught dead setting foot in the _library_ of all places. He can't clearly remember the last time he showed up at school, and honestly, it's a miracle that he hasn't been kicked out yet. _Speaking of getting kicked out, I probably need to get out of here before someone catches me._ Luke grabbed his things and shoved them back in his bag and booked it out the door. As he was setting his bike upright, he heard voices coming from the house that shared the property with the shed. He didn't have time to look back and see who it was before high-tailing out of there.

Once again, he took off on his bike without looking back. He had so much to tell Alex and Reggie.


	2. Waiting To Be Found

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke finally meets up with Alex and Reggie to explain what's been happening. We might get a small appearance from a particular curly-haired girl in this one :D

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. Just, wow. I posted the first chapter for this yesterday after daydreaming about what I want this story to be about at work all weekend, and you guys really blew me away. So many hits and kudos!! And the comments y'all have left got me so excited to put out chapter 2. What do you guys think is gonna happen next?
> 
> I miiiight be already typing up chapter 3 as we speak. I'm thinking a certain music class scene? yes no? >.>

  
When Luke finally arrived at the school that he and his boys went to, it was almost comedic how unfamiliar the place looked to him. It’s not necessarily that he was a  _ bad _ student, he just knew somewhere deep down that he never wanted a boring 9 to 5 job that involved paying attention to most of it. Well, he showed up to school when he had to, but he either kept his head down or in the clouds all day, and wasn’t familiar at all with his surroundings. The music-inspired boy probably couldn’t name 5 people he attended school with, minus his boys. 

One convenient thing about the school grounds, though, was that there was an actual ‘parking space’ for his bike. He had gotten a little too used to leaving his bike in the yard at home, and now hiding it in a bush on a stranger’s property. 

That was going to be a fun one to explain. Anyways.

Luke propped his bike up in the little rungs, slapped a bike lock on it, and started making his way into the building. He adjusted the position of his bookbag, taking on the appearance of a regular student.

_ I could pretend to be a good noodle,  _ he thought to himself.

As he walked down the hall, he was keeping his eyes mostly on his phone and not really paying attention to his surroundings. Nothing new there, right? He tuned in for a moment to hear bits and pieces of conversations around him, not particularly paying any mind to the students chattering around him.

“-but, do you know what you’re going to do today?”

“I’ll know in the moment.”

That seemed like an answer he’d give in place of a big, fat ‘hell no.’ There were other conversations about a pep rally on Friday, which he was very much going to skip. No sense in wasting time watching a bunch of other “talented students” perform when he could be practicing his own talent. Not that there was much of any talent that he knew of going on here, anyways.

Classes didn’t start for another couple of minutes, so he had plenty of time to get comfy in the library and await the arrival of Alex and Reggie. As he walked into their rendezvous point, he looked around, trying to pinpoint a spot that would make it difficult to be seen and heard. Having one of his teachers, whom he couldn’t care less to memorize their faces, hear him talking about running away from home would be less than ideal. He decided on a study table in the back that was poorly lit and made his way over.

As he sat down, a tall blond boy wearing a pink hoodie walked in with a skinny, leather-clad, brunet boy on his heels. The brunette said something inaudible from where Luke was sitting, but it was loud enough to disturb the peace of the nearly silent library. Alex swiftly whacked his friend, trying to get him to quiet down. Reggie frowned, and muttered something to himself about the library being “too stoic” for his liking.

Luke craned his neck and waved at the two, trying to make his presence known. His friends spotted him immediately and had to use all of their willpower to keep from running towards the table he was at. It was clear that they were worried about Luke and his lack of communication last night.

“Dude, where have you  _ been _ ?” Reggie whisper-shouted, loud enough to get his point across but quiet enough to stay on the library staff’s good side.

“Yeah, and why do you smell like you spent the night in someone’s attic?” Alex continued.

Alex and Reggie pulled out chairs from the table and sat down, eager to hear whatever it is that Luke had been hiding. Luke sighed and put his head in his hands, running his fingers through his shaggy hair. 

“I mean, it wasn’t an attic, but close enough.”

His friends gave him a look that easily translated to something along the lines of ‘what the hell are you talking about’. He continued on.

“I may or may not have stayed the night in someone’s garage last night,” Luke said carefully.

Alex’s eyes nearly bugged out of his head. 

“What do you mean in someone’s garage? Like, a family friend or a relative or something? Or another friend?”

Reggie dropped his voice to a low whisper. “Luke has other friends besides us..?”

That comment earned him another whack, and an annoyed look from Luke. He sighed again.

“I don’t really know whose garage it was, honestly. I just kinda showed up.”

“What, like, you broke-” Alex cut himself off and whispered. “You broke into someone’s garage?” 

Luke shrugged and failed his arms, realizing how bad it sounds out loud.

“It wasn’t on purpose! But when you say it like that, I mean, I guess that’s what happened. I wasn’t planning on it, it just kind of… happened?”

Reggie sat back in his chair and folded his arms over his chest. 

“Ok but what were you doing in some random person’s garage anyways? And how did you not get caught?”

Honestly, it was kind of a miracle that he didn’t get caught. What are the odds that no one saw him breaking in, and that no one felt the need to walk out into the shed-garage thing. The furniture and instruments definitely gave off the vibe that  _ someone _ enjoyed going out there, but the dust on everything made it clear that it’s been a little while. 

“I kind of got into it with my mom last night,” Luke explained. “A lot of hurtful words were said, on both ends, and it was dark out, I had nowhere else to go. And I didn’t really wanna be found, which is why I didn’t say anything to you guys. Didn’t she tell you? Reggie, you said my folks were worried sick.”

Reggie perked up and rubbed the back of his neck, letting out a guilty laugh.

“I may have exaggerated the truth a little bit on that one. We didn’t talk to your parents, I just assumed that if I threw them into the equation, you’d feel a little more obligated to tell us where you were.”

He was once again met with an annoyed look, from both Luke and Alex. Reggie shrugged and sunk down into his chair, as some form of a silent apology. During this time, Alex seemed to put two and two together.

“Wait, so does this mean you ran away from home?”

Luke folded his arms on the table and rested his head on them. He let out a frustrated groan and shrugged.

“I don’t know. Maybe? Kind of. I just feel like my folks are trying to hold me back from my dream.  _ Our  _ dream, boys. My mom was saying a lot of crap about how she and my dad don't think it's a good idea for a bunch of 17 year olds to just do what they want and tour the world, but that’s exactly what I’ve been trying to tell them that I  _ want  _ to do. It’s like they weren’t even listening whenever I said that.”

His friends very much understood where he was coming from in his frustrations. Reggie’s family was only being held together by strings at this point, and having a teenage son wanting to go out and tour the world wasn’t exactly what they had in mind for their kid. It appeared that they just wanted him to be quiet and out of sight, which was the last thing on Reggie’s mind at all times. Being a part of Sunset Curve meant wanting people to know your name, your music, your  _ talent _ . They were going to be legends one day, he just knew it.

Alex could also relate to Luke’s homelife. He and his parents used to be really close. He felt like he could tell them anything, but unfortunately, telling them one of his biggest secrets was what separated them for good

He came out to his parents last year, hoping they’d be supportive of him and who he was, but he was met with backlash and lectured about church and ‘living in sin.’ He couldn’t remember the last time his family actually  _ went  _ to church, let alone believed in anything it stood for. Alex decided from that point on, if his parents weren’t going to treat him the same because he was gay, then they didn’t get to have a son close enough to treat him  _ any  _ sort of way.

Both boys still lived at home, of course, but they kept their presences very unknown to their families. They shared a knowing look with each other.

“We get where you’re coming from, dude. Maybe it’s about time we start looking at places of our own? Y’know, get jobs and start saving up to move out of our parents’ houses?” Alex suggested, having pondered this idea many times before.

“I mean, maybe,” Luke started. “But, if we got jobs and stuff, would we still have time for the band?”

They all felt that that was a good point. There was no sense in making any rash decisions right now, but it was definitely something to think on. Just as they were wrapping up their conversation, the bell signaling that there was 5 minutes before class started rang. 

“Are you actually going to go to class today, or are you ditching again?” Alex asked, hoping he’d stick around for at least a few classes. Luke sighed.

“I may as well go to class. I’ve already been kicked out of my parents, might as well try not to get kicked out of school, too.”

“I mean, technically, you weren’t kicked out-” Reggie started, earning yet another whack from his friends, which shut him up.


	3. Bright Forever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke finally meets up with the guys to spill everything. Well, mostly everything. After a long heart-to-heart, he finds an odd interested in a girl from his music class. Any guesses on who that could be, hm?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeehaw, 2 chapters in one day! This is 100% to make up for the fact that I'll be busy like,,, for the rest of the week. Hope you all have a happy thanksgiving, to those who celebrate. And if you don't, have a good week/weekend!
> 
> Side note: longest chapter yet :D

The boys left the library side by side as they walked to their first class together: music. This was the one class that Luke felt he could really focus in, and it was good that it was first thing in the morning. That way, he had a good start to the day, assuming he actually comes to school that day.

They walked into the classroom to see the chairs set up like an audience. 

_ Looks like someone’s gonna be performing today _ .

There were amps, a drumset off to the side, various string instruments, and other stereotypical high school band instruments locked up in their respective cases. The three boys took a seat as the teacher, whose name he never bothered to learn, walked in. She set her stuff down on a large desk in the corner of the room, announcing something about getting comfortable and ‘getting your talking out of your system now, because we’ll be having some class performances today.’ Luke was neutral about seeing other students try to show what they could do, but he knew damn well that most of these kids were either being forced by their parents to pick up an extracurricular or having their ‘success’ paved for them with money and networking.

Just as the bell rang, two girls scurried in the door and took their seats somewhere behind Luke and the guys. There were whispers of ‘don’t be nervous’ and ‘you’ll do great’ as they set their bags on the floor. The teacher then made her way to the front of the room and clapped her hands together to get everyone’s attention. 

“Alright class, just a couple of announcements before we get started. Firstly, as some of you know, there will be a pep rally next Friday and I will be expecting  _ all  _ of you to attend. There is a sign up sheet for those of you that would like to try out and perform at that, so make note of that. Even if you don’t get selected, you should be there to cheer on your fellow musical peers.”

As soon as she mentioned the sign up sheet, students began turning their heads to look at their friends, whispering about possible ideas for the pep rally shows. A skinny blonde girl dressed in all pink stood up and spoke in an incredibly high pitched voice.

“Mrs. Harrison, I think it would be a fair statement to say that Dirty Candy will definitely be performing at the pep rally.” She squeaked.

Mrs. Harrison sighed and crossed her arms.  _ Ok, so that was her name. Good to know _ . 

“Carrie, there are only two spots for the pep rally performance. Dirty Candy is not guaranteed to either of them. You’ll have a fair shot just like everyone else.” 

“Well of course, but Dirty Candy is the most talented group in the school, if you ask me. Right, girls?”  _ Carrie _ asked, earning nods and hums of approval from a few girls sitting near her.

Mrs. Harrison sighed and repeated that everyone has a fair shot. 

The class soon began, starting off with a quiet, mousy girl playing an old hymn on her violin. The slow beat of the song was enough to nearly put Luke to sleep, almost joining Reggie who had actually knocked out during the performance. A small snore came out of his mouth, causing Alex to kick his foot to wake him up.

_ “Thanks, bro.” _ He mouthed. Alex nodded and gave him a thumbs up.

Eventually she was done, and the class clapped. Reggie wasn’t sure if it was because she was good or because it was finally over. 

A couple of more students went up and played their instrument of choice before a blond boy with an electric guitar walked up to the front of the room. Luke sat up for this one, having slouched in his chair from the last couple of kids. He looked over at Alex and Reggie, and they also seemed to be more intrigued.

“Ok, Nick. The floor is yours. Take it away.” Mrs. Harrison spoke.

Luke hadn’t recalled seeing this guy before, but that wasn’t too surprising. If he carried around an electric guitar all the time, though, he’s a little shocked he never noticed him before. 

Nick started off with a slow progression of chords that could’ve belonged to any number of rock songs. It eventually sped up, causing a couple of students to nod their heads along to the tune he had going.

_ He’s not bad _ , Luke decided.  _ But he’s not  _ great. 

Nick ended his guitar solo with an over-exaggerated jerk of his guitar and a look on his face that seems kinda painful. Mrs. Harrison clapped, joining the rest of the class in applauding him. The pink-clad girl from earlier made sure her clapping was heard over everyone elses’ and tacked on a ‘wow’ for good measure. Luke assumed that the shrill sounding girl and this Nick character were some sort of item.

“That was impressive, Nick. But not as impressive as…” Mrs. Harrison droned on and complimented the boy, which was something that Luke couldn’t be bothered to tune into.

What was said afterwards was what got his attention.

“Ok, we have one last performance,” Mrs. Harrison paused. “Julie.”   
  
Everyone turned their attention to the girl that she was referring to, including the boys. It was one of the girls that walked in almost late. She had olive colored skin, curly dark hair that was being covered up by a baseball cap, and a casual sense of style that made her stand out in a room full of musically gifted students. Luke leaned forward as she got up and made her way to sit at the piano and play for the class.

_ She’s cute, _ he thought to himself.

She sat there for a moment, looking back to the other girl she came in with for support. The girl nodded and gave her a small smile. He also wanted to give her an encouraging nudge, cheering her on to play. He’d never seen the girl before, not that he could remember, but there was something different about her. He could feel it.

Julie looked at Mrs. Harrison.

“Take your time,” she whispered.

She lifted the lid for the piano keys and readied her fingers. She took a deep breath and let it out, trying to relax herself. This was the time when that adrenaline rush would surge through her, willing her to play her heart out. It was that jolt of energy that had always inspired her to play music in the past.

But it didn’t come.

She hesitated before lifting her head to face Mrs. Harrison again. Her friend stood, worried.

“I’m sorry.” 

There was a sullen silence in the room. It was interrupted by that same annoying, shrill voice.

“Is this where we clap?” She asked, feigning innocence. 

The girl with stage fright stood up and nearly ran out of the room.

“Watch it, Carrie,” Julie’s friend snapped at the pompous girl.

Flynn sounded as if she’d be ready to throw hands with that prissy little snot if her friend didn’t need her so badly. She chased after Julie. Something in Luke wasn’t settling right. For whatever reason, he really wanted to know if that girl,  _ Julie _ , was ok. It was clear that she wasn’t, but something in him was trying to convince him to make it better. The bell rang, signaling the end of the class and students eagerly jumped out of their seats, making their way towards the exit. Luke filed out of the classroom, momentarily forgetting about his friends as he looked both ways down the hall, in search of the girl.

He spotted her for a brief moment near a locker, with the same friend that chased after her. There were tears running down her cheeks and a small piece of Luke’s heart broke seeing that. She momentarily made eye contact with him and he offered her a look of empathy. Julie wasn’t able to return the gesture as Flynn coerced her out of the crowded hallway.

As soon as the two girls were out of sight, Alex and Reggie came up to Luke.

“You ok, man?” Alex asked, placing a hand on Luke’s shoulder.

“Yeah, you hauled ass out of there really quickly.” Reggie said, sharing the same concern for his friend. 

Luke stared at the spot where Julie and Flynn stood for another moment before responding.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m good.”

The boys didn’t believe him one-hundred percent, but they both decided to drop it for now. Alex decided that he was going to pester him about it later.

\---

Julie was sitting on the counter in the girls’ bathroom while her best friend was trying to comfort her. It’s been so hard to play music since her mom passed away, and she knew that this was her last chance to stay in the music program. It’s not that she didn’t  _ want _ to play music anymore, it’s just that it doesn’t feel right. It almost put her in some sort of weird depression funk to even think about playing music without her mom around. Her mom was her biggest inspiration when it came to music. She even had a private studio in the backyard where she and Julie would work on their own pieces, and eventually share their work with each other, but Julie hadn’t been able to face her mom’s studio since her passing. And it’s all gone downhill from there.

“Jules, you know that was your last shot at staying in the music program. And Carrie is going to gloat about you choking for the rest of eternity!” 

Julie shot Flynn an annoyed look at her choice of wording.

“Uh- not that you choked. Carrie doesn’t know your life story, not that she needs to, but of course it’ll look like that to her stuck-up ass.”

They both giggled. Carrie was stuck up. The two of them used to be the best of friends when they were kids, but as they grew up, Carrie became mean. Really mean. She started making up rumors and saying nasty things about Julie just to taunt her. Once her mother died, she was out of school for a week or so, and Carrie got most of the school to believe that Julie had moved away without telling anybody. 

Technically, she wouldn’t be wrong. Julie’s dad has been trying to convince her and Carlos that moving will help them heal and move on as best as they can. Carlos was more concerned about leaving his friends, but Julie didn’t know if leaving behind the memories of her mom was worth it.

The girls finally left the bathroom and continued their day at school, texting each other in between classes to check in. Mostly, it was Flynn checking on Julie to make sure she was ok. Of course, Julie was faking being ok and honestly, she just wanted to go home and cry, but she was trying to stay strong. So far, she was doing… mediocre, but it was good enough to satisfy Flynn for now.

\---

Luke begged Alex and Reggie to let him stay at either of their places tonight, not trying to bet on the probability of his newfound shed being a safe go-to whenever he wanted. Reggie knew his parents would shit a brick if he tried to ask if Luke could stay for a while, so the next best alternative was Alex’s place. 

It’s not that Alex’s parents  _ didn’t  _ like Luke, but they knew that the boys would never go to sleep and would absolutely get into some sort of trouble. They compromised on letting Luke stay until 11pm or so, and then he’d have to leave. 

The school day was over and done with hours ago, and Luke was laying on Alex’s bedroom floor staring at the ceiling. He was contemplating either going home or sneaking back into that garage he stayed in last night. Honestly, sleeping in a dumpster seemed like a better idea to Luke than going home. Alright, that might be an exaggeration, but he really did not want to go home. His next big decision was figuring out whether he should tell his two best friends where he’ll be staying.

He had no doubt that Alex and Reggie wouldn’t tattle on him to his parents, but the two would definitely disapprove of breaking into somebody else’s property again.

Eventually, 11 o’clock rolled around and Alex was walking Luke to the door.

“Are you thinking you’re just gonna go back home and call it a night?” Alex asked, knowing he didn’t want to but hoping he’ll say yes.

“I don’t know, honestly.” Luke sighed. Alex was afraid of that answer.

“What’s the worst that could happen? You know your mom is probably worrying herself to death right now.”

Luke nodded. He was probably right.

“I’ll think about it.” A small smile formed on his lips as the words left his mouth. Alex took this as a good sign.

Luke picked his bike up out of Alex’s yard and rode off, calling out a farewell behind him. Alex stayed in his doorway until his friend was no longer in sight.

The brown haired boy felt bad about lying to his friend. He wanted to be honest and tell him he wasn’t going back home tonight, but he didn’t have the guts to do it. Not right now. A little white lie never hurt anybody, though, right?

The next problem was remembering where that house was. He knew he’d eventually have to pass his parent’s house to get to it though, and it was coming up soon. He biked for a few more minutes before coming up on the familiar road where he’d grown up. As he got to his driveway, he slowed to a stop and stared at his house. All of the lights were off except for one: a lamp in his parents’ bedroom. As he stayed for another few moments, the light went out. He sighed and took that as his cue to leave. Before leaving, he pulled his phone out of his pocket to check the time.

11:24.

It was earlier than usual for his parents to be going to sleep already. He may have been being stubborn, but there was a small ache in his chest at the idea that his parents weren’t even going to leave the lights on for him in case he decided to go home. 

_ Whatever. _

This just proved to him that they were happier with him not at home.

Once again, he took off down the street away from his parents’ house, in search of the garage he took shelter in. Luke didn’t exactly remember where the property was, considering it was just as dark out and starting to rain, but hopefully he’d be able to find it.

After a few minutes of riding down a couple of familiar streets, the area looked how he remembered it and he stumbled upon the trusty garage. He took every precaution again before inching his way up the driveway towards the shed. 

Luke repeated his process of scoping the area before finding the key that let him in last time, returning it, and beelining straight for the couch. He set his stuff down quickly and pulled out the blanket he’d used last time, ready to doze off for a few hours. He got comfortable, sent a quick text to Alex and Reggie, letting them know he got “home” safely, and drifted into a dreamless sleep.

What he didn’t realize, however, was a page of sheet music sitting on the table in front of him. And that most certainly wasn’t there yesterday.


	4. Through the Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our dynamic duo finally meet after Luke breaks in for another night of escaping his parents' house.

It was finally the weekend. Luke was a little skeptical about being seen in this shed in broad daylight, but after a little bit of snooping, he found that there was a loft in the top of it. It was the perfect hiding spot for him until the sun went down.

He woke up that morning to find a few more texts from his parents. They were from his dad this time.

_ We just want to know that you’re safe. Come home when you’re ready, son. _ __   
__   
He wasn’t ready and he didn’t know when he would be, or if he ever would be. He left the text messages open, but unanswered. He ended up spending the rest of the day lost in thought, weighing the pros and cons of going back home, getting a job, or getting a place with Alex and Reggie. Before he knew it, the sun had set and the sky was growing darker. He figured he’d be safe to climb down the loft stairs and make his way to the couch that he’d gotten a little too comfortable on. 

He was either zoned out, having become too far gone in his own head, or halfway to dozing off when he heard a noise. If he didn’t know any better, it may have sounded like someone was fiddling with the lock on the double barn doors of the shed. 

His mind was carrying him elsewhere as this happened. His worst thoughts were coursing through his head. So many  _ what if _ ’s riddled his brain as he came up with the worst possible outcomes of this situation.

_ Mom and Dad have completely given up on me. I’m practically homeless right now. My dream could very well be out the window. If the boys and I have to get jobs, then what’s going to happen to Sunset Curve?  _

Too many thoughts whipped around in his mind, causing his head to start hurting. He didn’t even notice the small trickle of tears that were making their way down his face.

Luke didn’t even have time to hide or escape before the doors swung open.

\---

Julie made her way down the stairs after spending some time in her room alone. Her dad wasn’t too thrilled about her basically being kicked out of the music program. He figured this was all the more reason that he and the kids needed to move, and get away from this place. Ray had tasked Julie with tackling her mother’s old studio, claiming he and Carlos wouldn’t even know where to start. She promised him that she’d get on it soon.

Her father was on the couch, drifting out of consciousness as some home improvement show played in the background. She walked past him and tiptoed towards the front door, not wanting to wake him.

She was heading towards her mother’s studio. It had definitely been quite some time since she’d been out there last, and she was so upset about the events of today. More than anything, she just wanted her mom to comfort her, and what better way to feel connected to her late mother than by spending time in her old studio?

_ Now is as good of a time as ever, _ she thought.

Julie padded down the stepping stone path towards the shed, feet clad in some sort of dinosaur-monster house slippers. As she approached the double doors, she put her hand on the lock and sighed. Being in here still hurt, but she was trying so hard to work past that.

She opened the doors, but didn’t bother to turn the lights on. She just wanted to sit in silence with her mother’s memory for just a moment longer. After a few seconds, she spoke.

“I’m so sorry, Mom. That I haven’t been here.” She let out a shaky breath that she didn’t know she’d been holding.

She stumbled around in the dark for another few moments before finally finding the lightswitch. Julie flicked the lights on and they took a moment to light up the room, but when they did, she heard a gasp. Her eyes were taking a moment to adjust from being plunged into darkness, but when she finally came to her senses, her eyes pinpointed to a figure on the couch.

There was a teenage boy with a backpack by his feet. His hair was pointed in a few different directions and there were tear stains on his face. His arms laid limply in his lap and his mouth hung open, stunned. A small yelp escaped Julie’s lips.

“W-who are you and how did you get in here?!” Julie demanded.

Her words were shaky. She didn’t know this guy, but he did look familiar. Still, she couldn’t let her guard down. What if he was dangerous? Luke got on his feet and put his hands out in front of him, trying to calm her down. She was anxiously pacing, and probably fixing to call the cops or something.

“Look, look, I can explain! I uh…” he started, not really knowing  _ how _ to explain himself.

His eyes searched everywhere as he panicked. He didn’t know what to say, but he recognized this girl somehow. Maybe he’d seen her before? Maybe they shared a class or something. Then it clicked.  _ Julie.  _ The girl from the music program the other day.

“You’ve got about 30 seconds to start talking before I call the police!” She paused and started talking to herself. “Though I’m not really sure how to explain there’s a strange cute boy in my garage… but it’s a stranger nonetheless! I’ll have you arrested for breaking in!”

While pacing back and forth in the studio, she managed to get her hands on a baseball bat that was collecting dust in the corner.

A small goofy smile took its place on Luke’s lips.

“So you think I’m cute, huh?” he teased, sniffling at the end of his statement.

Damn, she was kinda hoping that part stayed in her head instead of leaving her mouth.

Coy bastard.

“You are so not helping your situation right now, I swear- wait. Why are you crying? Er, why  _ were  _ you crying? Are you ok?”

She knew she didn’t know this boy, but she didn’t feel threatened by him. If he was dangerous at all, she felt that he would have already tried to do something. She wasn’t quite sure why she was asking him if he was ok, but there was a particular energy around him that felt…  _ different _ . She lowered the bat to her side. She slowly started making her way closer to him. He turned his head to look away, kind of embarrassed that someone had caught him crying.

“It’s uh, it’s stupid. But it kind of has to do with how I ended up here,” Luke started, “but you don’t really want to know that, do you?” 

His question sounded more like a statement. Luke wasn’t used to anyone besides his two best friends caring about him, let alone asking him if he was ok. He also wasn’t used to random girls, whose garage he’d broken into, asking him if he was ok. That part was very new and very weird. He honestly expected to be in handcuffs or being beaten to a pulp by some sort of father figure.

Julie took that as an opportunity to sit next to him on the couch. There was plenty of space between them, allowing her to feel safe and him to feel comfortable, but they were still side by side. 

“Well, if I didn’t want to know, I wouldn’t have asked.” She stated softly.

Luke wiped his remaining tear stains away with his arm. He opened his mouth to speak, but let out a sigh, struggling to form the words to even begin his story. Where to  _ start? _ He felt his eyes begin to water again as he mentally delved back into the emotions he was feeling. He put his head into his hands and let out an exaggerated groan. Julie’s heart broke just looking at him. 

She’s always been an empathetic kind of person, and having someone break down right in front of her, even a stranger, definitely tugged on the heart strings. She attempted to reach a hand out to him, but stopped a few inches away. She lamely placed her hand back at her side.

“It’s ok, you can take your time. Or you don’t even have to tell me at all.” She said, her voice just above a whisper.

Luke shook his head as he lifted it from his hands.

“I just. I feel like you wouldn’t understand. Not you specifically, but just in general.”

Julie scooted slightly closer to him.

“Try me.” 

He started from the beginning of his life story, introducing Alex and Reggie, and explained how they basically saved his life with music.

“Alex and I have been best friends since childhood, our parents knew each other probably from work or something. But he was always there. And then in middle school, Reggie showed up. Those two could never remain quiet. Alex was always tapping some sort of beat on something, and Reg would constantly be stealing rubber bands from teachers to make some sort of arts-and-crafts makeshift guitar. Eventually, we all just kinda knew that we wanted to be a band and make it big someday.” 

Luke paused for a moment to reminisce on the past before continuing.

“Music was what saved me. I struggled with depression a lot when I was 13-ish, maybe 14. I almost did some stupid things, but this dream was what kept me going.  _ Our  _ dream. But my folks, they just don’t get it. They keep telling me I’m throwing my life away.”

Julie felt for him. Music had saved her, too. Now wasn’t the time to dive into her personal trauma, though. She tried to reason with him, maybe she could say something that would spark some sort of mutual understanding between him and his parents.

“Maybe they’re just trying to keep you safe?” She tried. “I think that sometimes parents think that they know best, and they’re used to their kids wanting to chase these crazy dreams. Maybe they just want to protect you from getting hurt, is all.”

He shook his head again.

“I thought that was the case, but they haven’t been supportive at all. Do you have any idea what it feels like to have your mother look you in the eye and tell you that the one thing you’re passionate about is a  _ waste of time? _ What would you do if she said that?”

Julie winced and a pained look covered her face. 

_ Oh, shit. _ Luke had struck a nerve and he knew it. They both did.

It was Julie’s turn to look away in an attempt to hide her face. She sat up and brought her knees close to her chest, wrapping her arms around them.

“I uh, I wouldn’t know. My mom passed away about a year ago.” She said, her voice breaking at the end.

“Oh.  _ Oh.  _ Damn, uh. I’m so sorry. Look, I didn’t know.” He pleaded, trying to get her attention back over to him.

She wouldn’t budge. He got off the couch and knelt down in front of her, placing one hand on the sofa to steady himself and one hand on her knee.

“Julie, I’m so sorry. Please, look at me. I never would’ve said anything had I known.”

Her head snapped in his direction.

“How do you know my... “ she trailed off. “ _ You _ . You saw me in the hallway the other day after music class. After…”

He searched her eyes for some sort of hint of an answer, trying to gauge her reaction.

_ That’s _ why Mrs. Harrison was being so kind to her. She knew what kind of pain the girl was going through, and possibly why she wasn’t able to play music like she wanted. She was grieving, and her passion was taking the biggest hit from it.

One of his award winning smiles spread across his face as she put two and two together about who he was. He was hoping she’d seen him, and he was hoping she’d maybe felt a little better. He wasn’t sure what the gesture was supposed to accomplish, but he hoped that maybe she didn’t feel so alone in the world. His smile must have been contagious because a grin of her own was growing on her lips.

“There it is.” He nearly whispered.

A light blush covered her cheeks. Luke jumped back up on the couch, sitting a little closer to her this time. He bumped her knee with his own.

“Are you ok, though? As far as the music program? And everything else?” he asked. 

“I’m not sure, honestly. But I will be.”

“But what about you? What are you going to do about your situation with your parents? Won’t they send someone to come find you or something? Are  _ you  _ ok?” She asked.

“I’ll figure something out. I always do. And eventually, I will be.” He answered, mimicking her response. 

The two shared a smile for a moment before Luke awkwardly coughed.

“I um, better get back inside. My dad might come looking for me if I stay out much longer.” Julie said, coming up with some sort of excuse. 

Luke nodded and cleared his throat. Julie got up off the couch and attempted to smooth her clothes out. She opened her mouth to speak, but paused before starting again.

“Um, you can stay out here for a little while, if you want. I won’t call the cops, and I certainly won’t tell my dad.”

“Thank you.” Luke nodded appreciatively. 

She made her way to the barn doors and opened them, ready to leave. She turned around and looked at the boy in her garage one more time.

“Goodnight…” she trailed off, realizing she never caught his name.

“Luke.” He finished for her. Another smile graced her features.

“Goodnight, Luke.”

And with that, the doors were shut. He got up to turn the lights off before going back to his spot, where he laid on the couch in the shed by himself. He stared up at the rafters and put his arms behind his head. A content sigh escaped him.

“Goodnight, Julie.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, 3 days in a row of new chapters! I didn't think I'd be able to crank one out today, tbh. I hope I didn't make Luke seem like this super emotional wreck, but he is very much a big softie. Change my mind. Anyways. Hope y'all enjoy!


	5. Explanations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke has some realizations while hanging out with Reggie.

Julie had hardly slept last night with her mind being preoccupied by the boy staying in her mom’s studio, but she felt as rested and light on her feet as she ever had. She had an extra pep in her step when she got up the next morning.

“What’s got you in such a good mood?” Carlos asked, making a face at her and mumbling something along the lines of ‘weirdo’.

Julie shrugged as she sat at the table to have some cereal.

“Dunno. Just slept really well, I guess.”

Their father was too invested in his work right now, even on a Sunday, to pay much attention to their conversation, but he was aware of the presence of his children. He was just an incredibly busy man.

She excused herself from the table after she had finished eating, threw her cereal bowl in the sink, and booked it upstairs to get dressed for the day. For whatever reason, she wanted to dress a little cuter than she usually did. She contemplated in front of her closet for a moment before deciding on some dark grey overalls, a bright colored sweatshirt, and a chain at her side.

After checking herself out in the mirror for a quick second, Julie made her way back downstairs and headed out the door, calling something about “cleaning out the garage” over her shoulder. She barely heard a reply from her dad as the door shut behind her. She practically skipped down the stepping stone stairs to the garage where she paused.

_ Should she knock? _

There was a teenage boy staying in there, what if he was… _ indecent _ ? Her face turned bright red at the thought before physically shaking her head to clear the idea out of her mind. She looked around for a moment, feeling weird about knocking on a door that technically belonged to her, before rapping her knuckles against the side door. She waited.

No response.

She tried again, hoping to be a little louder this time, but still got no response. She figured Luke may have still been asleep, then. Maybe he wasn’t an early riser like her. After all, it was only 10-ish, that’s still kind of early. She turned the knob gently, hoping not to wake him if he  _ was _ still asleep, and pushed the door open.

The morning sun was just beginning to shine through the windows, casting the room in a faint golden color. She looked around before stepping inside, shutting the door behind her.

“Hello?” She called out.

No one was there.

Luke was nowhere to be found and his stuff was gone. The only thing left of him in the garage was an indent in the couch where he had slept the night before. She paced around for a moment, not sure what to do next, until something on the table caught her eye. There was a small pile of papers, but on top was a sticky note.

_ Thanks for everything. _

_ -L _

_ P.S. - This song is beautiful. I’d love to hear you play it sometime, when you’re ready. _

Her mind raced with ideas, recalling the night before. She mentioned what had to be the most traumatic thing to ever happen to her to a  _ stranger _ . In her experience, most people didn’t understand why she stopped playing, but she wasn’t about to explain that in detail to Luke, or anyone else for that matter.

An inkling of hope grew in her chest that maybe he understood a bit more about her than he was letting on. The sticky note could be proof of that.

Julie removed the sticky note off of the pile of papers on the table. She picked it up, knowing damn well what it was. It was a song that her mother had written for her.  _ That  _ was the song she wanted to play when she was ready again. She doesn’t know how Luke knew, but she felt warm inside at the idea of him possibly being proud of her for playing again. 

She sat down on the couch, being embraced by a somewhat familiar smell of sandalwood and aftershave, and examined the sheet music again. The song meant more to her than anyone could imagine. At the bottom of the last page was a handwritten note.

_ You can do anything you set your mind to. Don’t give up. _

_ XO Mom _

She brought the paper to her chest and held it, letting a single tear slide down her face as memories of her mom washed over her.

\---

Luke felt that he shouldn’t be here in the morning when Julie got up. He felt like he may have overstepped some boundaries, considering he hardly knew the girl, yet here he was practically crying in front of her and bringing up some of her emotional baggage as well. 

_ Geez, I really have a way with people or something. _

He showed up at Reggie’s house as soon as he left the garage he had been hunkering in. His friend wasn’t too jazzed about having to butter up his parents into agreeing to let Luke come over, but after being bribed with donuts from a shop down the street, he couldn’t say no.

That’s where the boys were headed now.

They strolled into the shop and flirted with the petite blonde at the cash register in hopes of getting some discounted donuts. It worked.

Reggie proudly carried the box of freshly glazed sweets as they made their way to a table to perch and inhale their donuts.

“So,” Reggie started, words muffled by donuts. “We both know that you haven’t been going home to your parents at night. Have you been hiding in that shitty old garage again?”

“It’s not shitty!” Luke protested.

Reggie gave him a look, knowing Luke wasn’t intentionally trying to give up his location so easily. The shaggy haired boy groaned and dropped his head onto his crossed arms.

“Ok, fine, so I’ve been hiding out there at night. But what’s the big deal? It’s not like my parents are going to welcome me back with open arms  _ and  _ let me continue with Sunset Curve.”

“ _ What’s the big deal?  _ Dude you’re practically-” he lowered his voice to just above a whisper. “You’re trespassing on someone else’s property. And how do you know you wouldn’t be welcomed back? Emily has always put you over anything else.”

Luke sighed.

“I know they’d let me come back home, but they definitely wouldn’t let me do what I want to do, which is chase my dreams. I want to play music that people will connect with, that people will  _ feel  _ with their hearts.”

“And all this time I thought people heard music with their ears.” Reggie quipped.

This earned him an unamused look from his bandmate. He muttered a quick apology before letting Luke continue.

“Mom and Dad wouldn’t dare let me travel and play shows. They think it’s too dangerous and a waste of my time. They’d rather I go to college to be like, an engineer or something.”

Luke couldn’t imagine wasting his life away getting a college education in something like  _ engineering _ . College was never really out of the question for him, but he’d prefer it to have some sort of relationship to music. 

“First of all, ew. Second of all, we’re 17 now. I mean, we only have less than a year before we’re legally considered adults. We could do whatever we want when we turn 18?” Reggie suggested.

_ Someone is spending waaaay too much time listening to Alex, _ Luke thought.

He wasn’t wrong though. Luke only had a few more months until he turned 18, and then he’d be legally able to do whatever he wanted. The only problem is, once he’s 18, if he defied his parents for anything, they could kick him out.

“I don’t know if I can wait, man. During the time we’d be waiting out hitting 18, we could be promoting Sunset Curve and playing more local shows. Even if we all did get jobs and stuff, maybe we’d still have a lot of time for the band? Especially with summer right around the corner.”

At this point, Luke was worrying himself sick and just rambling. Reggie let his mind wander before saying something that snapped him back into reality.

“You’re still missing the point where you’re breaking into someone’s house to get away from your folks.”

“I mean, it’s not  _ technically _ breaking and entering. I found a key but I was also fo…” He started mumbling as his sentence went on, clearly not wanting to be heard.

Reggie leaned forward across the table, trying to hear him better. Luke rubbed the back of his neck and looked anywhere besides his friend.

“I’m sorry, what was that? You were muffled by the sound of your own bullshit. Speak up?”

Luke sighed.

“I was… kinda found last night.”

The remaining donuts had been left to get cold, and upon hearing this news, Reggie had no intention of putting his attention back to the fried dough. He stuttered something to his friend, pleading with him to repeat himself.

“Look, it just kind of happened! I wasn’t focused, I was upset about this whole situation, and then bam! That girl from school walked in.”

“What girl?” Reggie asked. 

Typically, Luke was too busy focusing on music to pay attention to any girl from school.

“That girl from music class. The one who was supposed to play, but she couldn’t. Turns out that garage belongs to her. I was just trying to relax and unwind, and she came out of nowhere! We just ended up talking for a little bit, and I feel like we just kinda  _ clicked _ , y’know?”

Reggie paused, attempting to absorb all of this new information.

“So you stalked the girl from school after she refused to play and ended up flirting with her in her own garage?”

Luke slugged his friend in the arm for that comment.

“No, you dipshit! I didn’t stalk her, I didn’t even know it was her house. I didn’t even know she  _ existed  _ until that day in class.”

He didn’t bother to go into detail about their conversations. It wasn’t anyone else’s business, and it certainly wasn’t his to share. He doubted that Julie even knew the guys. 

“Aw, sounds like Luke has a little crush on the girl he stalked.” Reggie teased. Luke slugged him again.

“Will you keep your voice down?” He was whisper-yelling at this point, looking around to make sure no one was listening to their conversation. “I don’t have a crush on this girl, doofus. We’re not kids anymore. I just happened to have…” He stopped.

How does one justify breaking into someone’s garage without sounding weird? Reggie was giving him a look that said ‘ _ oh please, tell me more.’ _

“You get the point, jerkoff.” 

Luke huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. Reggie laughed at his friend’s flustered response. 

The boys spent the rest of the weekend hanging out, practically dreading coming back to school. Reggie claimed to have spoken for himself and Alex with not wanting to deal with tests, quizzes and studying, but Luke's reasoning was a little different. His emotions were fighting in his head, struggling to decide if he wanted to go back to school on Monday and keep up this 'good noodle' student thing, or continue ditching. The embarrassment was a little fresh in his mind from being caught mid-breakdown by the familiar girl but something in his heart urged him to go for a few hours, even if it was just to see her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! I didn't expect this fic to do as well as it has and honestly I'm so humbled and honored ;-; the amazing comments, the number of hits + kudos, I'm speechless. Thank you guys so much <3 i love you all! 
> 
> Also sorry for the filler chapter >.>


	6. See You Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke dreads going back to school on Monday but he doesn't want anything else, either.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *chanting* LONG CHAPTER LONG CHAPTER LONG CHAPTER. This is the longest chapter I've written for this fic, y'all! I'm very excited for what's in store for the next few chapters. If y'all wanna find me on tumblr and send me cute JATP shit, my @ is betta-bitch. I reblog a lot of JATP, TUA, and shitposts. 
> 
> Once again, thank you for the kudos, comments and hits <3 means the world, guys!

Monday finally rolls around and Luke can’t decide if the knot in his stomach is from anxiety or excitement. Alex and Reggie are at their usual spot in the commons area eating something that the school would pass off as breakfast when they see him approach.

“Uh, who are you and what have you done with Luke?” Alex asked, covering his mouth as he spoke.

“Yeah, the Luke  _ I  _ know hardly shows up to school, let alone on time. Did you kidnap him? Is he somewhere on your alien ship being probed? 5 bucks says he’s being probed.” Reggie theorized, patting Alex’s harm to get his attention. 

Luke rolled his eyes, half expecting the comments about not ditching.

“Oh, bite me, would you? We all know that this is a better alternative to going back home or wandering around town and risking being seen by my folks.”

He wouldn’t dare tell his friends the real reason why he showed up today, he could hardly admit it to himself. He wanted to see  _ her _ . He slept at Reggie’s house that night, so it’s the second day since he had been in that garage and seen her. Little did he know, she was walking out to said garage and checking if he’d returned every few hours or so. Not that she’d ever admit that, but still. 

The bell rang, signalling their first class. The one he was most looking forward to, yet the one he was dreading.

They walked into the classroom as Mrs. Harrison was arranging papers on her desk. Alex and Reggie took their usual spots as Luke paused at the door. He looked around for her. Her chair was empty. Her friend with braids sat by herself, looking disappointedly at the empty chair beside her. Luke let out a quiet sigh and took his place next to the guys.

The class began and his teacher began complimenting the students that played for the class last time. She gushed about their talents and improvements before mentioning something Luke had completely forgotten about.

“Now, almost everyone has performed for the class, but there are some of you that still haven’t set up a date and time with me to get that done. I’m not going to call you out, you know who you are. This  _ is  _ an important part of your grade.”

She looked around at the students, seemingly making eye contact with a few. Luke could swear that her eyes lingered on him and the boys for a second longer than the rest.

_ Shit.  _

They still hadn’t performed in front of the class. Alex turned and looked at the boys next to him, ready to make a game plan. 

“Ok, so how are we going to do this? I was thinking we could-” he began, only to be cut off.

“No talking for right now. I’d like for this class to begin, please. I don’t teach for my health, you know.” 

This earned a few snickers from the class. Luke made a face at Alex, being half an apology and half a ‘we’ll talk later’. Mrs. Harrison talked about the lesson plan and after summarizing it, finally began. It was something about pairing musicians with someone who excels in something the other may lack, and how that can make the two better.

Now that performing was out of the conversation, Luke felt he had no reason to pay attention. He zoned out for the rest of the class, filling his head with day dreams of playing shows at famous venues. 

The bell rang, snapping him out of his fantasies and ending the class. This gave Alex a chance to revive the conversation about performing.

“Ok, so I was thinking we’d obviously play as a band. We’d kill it and get a solid grade.”

The frontman could only pay attention for a few moments, because as soon as Alex began talking, he noticed a familiar figure hesitating by the door.

_ Julie _ .

She was pacing by the door and fiddling with her hands. She was clearly nervous. The only thing she could look at was Mrs. Harrison, who was momentarily preoccupied with talking to another student. The conversation sounded something like planning another class performance. Not long after, the student nodded and walked away. 

Julie swallowed her anxiety and pride, strutting up to the music teacher. Her fake confidence quickly wore off as she stood in front of her.

“Mrs. Harrison, I…” she tried. The teacher folded her hands and waited as Julie struggled to find her words. “I’m asking- no, begging,- to be let back into the program. Please. My dad was looking at options in other states, maybe even other countries!”

His heart broke for her. She looked so desperate. He could  _ feel _ that music was just as important to her as it was for him. He felt like he’d die if it was taken away from him.

Mrs. Harrison sighed and looked down for a moment. 

“Julie, I’m sorry. It wasn’t my choice to take you out of the music program. But there are only a certain number of spots, and yours has already been filled. We have one of the best music programs in California and there is a waiting list. My hands are tied.”

Julie nodded her understanding and walked out of the room. She was disappointed. It was clear to anyone with brain cells. For the second time, Luke felt a strong urge to chase after her and see if she was ok. This time, it was different, though. He knew her (kind of) and he knew about her situation (also kind of).

“I’ll be back in a second,” Luke said, excusing himself from the conversation the boys were having.

He quickly got up from his seat and ignored the calls behind him coming from Alex and Reggie. For whatever reason, he wanted to be the one to comfort her this time. He looked around the same hall he found her in last time, surprised that she didn’t go too far from the classroom. There she was, leaning up against a locker. He wasted no time getting to her.

“Julie!” He called, trying to get her attention.

Her head snapped towards his direction. There was a look on her face that he couldn’t quite pinpoint. Confusion? Embarrassment? Maybe a mixture of both. He leaned on the locker next to her, making eye contact.

“Jules, I kinda overheard what happened back there. I just wanted to make sure you were ok.”

_ Jules.  _ An unfamiliar feeling made its presence known in her stomach. She’d never label it as butterflies, though. It was more like a singular bug. That’s what she’d try to tell herself, anyway.

“Luke, I uh-, I’m fine. Really, um-.” She stuttered out. Her failed attempt at an excuse was interrupted. 

“Boy, you have about 2 seconds to remove your general presence from my locker before a you-sized dent becomes a new decoration for it.” A loud feminine voice threatened, practically in his ear.

He nearly jumped out of his skin before stuttering out an apology. He turned to look at the girl who nearly gave him a heart attack. It was Julie’s friend from music class.

“C’mon Julie, I don’t have time to be dealing with distractions, the lacrosse team is about to go train and I wanna watch!” 

Her friend marched off in the opposite direction, grabbing Julie by the arm and dragging her with her. She looked behind her and tossed an apologetic look in Luke’s direction. 

\---

Julie felt like her arm was practically going to fall off after Flynn’s manhandling of her limbs. She rubbed her arm, as it was still sore.

“Flynn, I could care less about watching the lacrosse team train. I don’t even care about sports.” She protested.

Flynn gave her a disbelieving look and rolled her eyes.

“You think I give a flying rat’s ass about sports? Honey, I’m there to watch the  _ show _ . Aaand, a particular hottie that you’ve been eyeballing happens to be on the lacrosse team.”

Julie’s face turned a nice shade of pink at her comment. She knew exactly who her friend was referring to: Nick.

She’d had a small crush on Nick for the longest time, but nothing could ever come of it. Not in this lifetime, anyways. Nick was Carrie Wilson’s current arm candy, and any girl that dared to go near him would certainly face social suicide. They’d only spoken a handful of times, but there was something about that boyish look of his that just made her heart melt when he smiled.

“But, speaking of boys, might I ask who that guy with incredible arms was? Y’know, the one I had to threaten off of my locker?” Flynn interrogated.

Now Julie’s face blushed a deeper red.

Even though Luke was practically a stranger to her, she felt like there was more to him than just some flirty guy that probably spent most of his time chasing after girls. The fact that he came to check on her (again) was really sweet and she couldn’t get that out of her head.

“Uh, he’s just some guy from one of my classes. I think we got paired up for a project or something, I haven’t been paying too much attention lately,” she excused.

That wasn’t  _ entirely _ a lie, focusing in class has been difficult for her lately, especially with getting kicked out of music. It’s all she can think about anymore. Well, that, and the strange cute boy that showed up in her garage.

“You get paired up with a hunky guy in one of your classes and you don’t pay attention to that? Yeah, right. I’ll let that slide for now, but don’t think for a second that I’m buying your bullshit excuse, Molina.” Flynn quipped.

She felt bad about not telling Flynn the truth, but she knew that she’d flip out. How exactly do you explain to your best friend that you’ve been apart of a guy hiding out in the garage without it sounding suspicious? Besides, knowing this school, rumors would be flying all over the place.

  
  


The school day came to an end and Julie was finally home. She was currently sprawled out on her bed on her stomach, watching videos on her phone varying from meals of tiny size being cooked to dogs doing dumb things. As the videos looped, her mind began to wander.

She was thinking about Luke and how quick he was to apologize at the mention of her mother. She knew he meant no harm, and she was grateful for how kind he was about the situation. She also wondered about  _ his  _ situation, considering he’d stayed in her garage a time or two, that she knew of. 

This thought lingered in her mind as she slowly found herself getting up and going downstairs. She crept quietly down the stairs. It was getting well into the evening, and her father would become very suspicious of her walking out the door this late, but she went anyway. 

She made her way to the wooden gate that separated the yard from the garage and unlocked it. She desperately wanted to know if he had come back for the night. Upon opening it, she let her mind wander on what she would even say to him. 

_ Hey, just thought I’d come check up on you and see if you’re breaking into my house again! _ __   
__   
She physically shook her head at the thought. How lame!

She descended the makeshift stone staircase and came to a stop. There was a figure outside the garage, sitting with their back against the door and knees to their chest. A bike lay not too far away. Her shoe scuffed the pavement as she halted, bringing the attention of the figure to her. In the dark, she could hardly make out a face but it kind of looked like…

“ _ Luke? _ ” She whispered, uncertain.

The moonlight offered a small amount of visibility, enough to see the smile growing on Luke’s face. He got up from his spot on the ground and dusted himself off, meeting Julie halfway. He opened his mouth to speak, but his words mostly came out in a stutter.

“Julie, hey. I, uh- well, I mean. Um, I’m not even sure what I was going to say, uh.”

He was mentally kicking himself right now, he had been sitting here since the sun went down and focusing on what he wanted to say to her. Julie was almost shocked that he was here. Her intentions of coming out here  _ were _ to check if he had shown up again, but she didn’t really expect him to.

“Luke,” she tried again. “What are you doing here?”

He shoved his hands in his pockets and cast his gaze down to the pavement he was currently scuffing his shoe against, as if it were suddenly the most interesting thing in the world.

“I… I guess I just wanted to make sure you were ok. Y’know, after today, and all. I mean, that was my goal after class but uh, we were kinda interrupted by your friend…?” He trailed off, not knowing the other girl’s name.

“Flynn.” She answered.

He nodded.

“Right, Flynn. Um, I was just trying to say I may have overheard a tiny bit of your conversation with Mrs. Harrison. And I know we’re not close or anything, but I know how much music means to you.”

His statement shocked her. Her gaze had also found the pavement as a safe place to be, but once she heard him, she looked up at him. His eyes met hers and she was met with a longing look, one that was hoping his assumption was right. 

“How do you know that?” She nearly whispered.

Had the night not been as silent as it was, minus a few nocturnal bugs singing, he may have not heard her.

“Whenever I was in there the other night, I saw a few pages of sheet music. Music is my everything, and I couldn’t help myself. I saw the note your mom left you on there, and I’m pretty sure you saw the note  _ I  _ left.” He explained. 

At this point, Luke was no longer looking at the ground. He was looking into Julie’s eyes and for a moment, it felt like the world stopped. Right now, it was just him and the girl in front of him. And the couple dozen cicadas in the immediate area. 

“That song, it’s amazing. And after seeing what happened both times in music, I know it has to mean as much to you as it does to me.”

She broke eye contact with him and let out a small sigh.

“It is important to me. It’s the one way I can connect with my mom. Or at least, it was. Now that she’s gone, I feel like I have no motivation to play. She was my biggest inspiration.”

Luke made one step closer to her, causing her to look up at him again.

“Jules, no one can force you to play again. No one can make you heal. Only you have the power to do that for yourself, when you’re ready. And when that day comes, you’re going to rock the world. I’d be lucky to witness that day,” 

The look on his face was so kind and tender. And there was that nickname again. She wasn’t sure when they became close enough for nicknames or if Luke was just the kind of guy to immediately assign terms of endearment to those around him.

“I don’t know what to do. I  _ want  _ to be ready. I need to be back in the music program. It’s only been a few days but I feel like my life is so grey without it. It’s like every time I get ready to play, I just freeze. I’m not scared to perform, I’m scared to never be heard again.” 

Julie’s voice cracked as she went on. Luke knew that feeling better than anything. He put his hand on her arm in an attempt to comfort her.

“You just have to trust yourself. And when you’re ready, you’ll know it.”

She gave him a watery smile as she tried to mentally calm herself down. After a few moments of silence, she cleared her throat and spoke again.

“What about you?” She asked. He looked puzzled.

“What about me?” He countered.

“I mean, your home situation with your parents. I was kind of worried when you didn’t show up.” 

She felt a little ridiculous for admitting that outloud, but she knew how hellbent he’s been on not going back home.

“I haven’t gone back to my folks, if that’s what you’re asking. I’ll admit, I’ve been couch surfing, but this is just a small taste of something I’ll have to get used to if I’m gonna be a legendary rockstar one day.” 

He was bullshitting and she could see right through him.

“Do you have anywhere to go tonight?” She asked softly.

She was looking him in the eye and she saw the smallest bit of sadness wash over his features. He quickly recovered before shrugging off the situation.

“Don’t worry about me, I’ll find a way. I always do.”

He was prideful. Luke wasn’t about to admit defeat, and he sure as hell wasn’t about to admit he was one stranger’s couch away from dragging his ass back home to his parents. He’d like to humor the idea that he could survive on the streets, but that was purely fantasy.

Julie was silent for a moment before she swallowed her anxiety.

“Luke…” she started. He looked in her direction immediately. “You can- I mean, if you don’t have anywhere else to stay tonight…”

The last bit of her sentence was mumbled and difficult for him to hear.

“Julie?” He prodded, urging her to go on.

“I’d feel better knowing you were here instead of sleeping on some stranger’s couch.” She admitted.

_ At least I know you’ll be safe here, _ she thought to herself. She wouldn’t dare speak that outloud.

A small smile spread across Luke’s lips and he had to fight the urge to wrap his arms around the petite girl in front of him. He wanted to, but he felt that that might make this situation awkward. He wasn’t even sure that he’d classify this,  _ whatever it was,  _ as a friendship yet. He certainly wanted to get to know her.

“This is an interesting little relationship you and I have.”

This brought a giggle out of Julie, which turned into both of them laughing.


	7. Out of the Dark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Julie reaches deep into her heart and discovers that maybe she is ready to play again. And she's got a particular rockstar-to-be to thank for that.

Luke woke up earlier than usual, especially on a school morning, and quickly gathered his things. He was so thankful for Julie letting him stay another night, but the anxiety that coursed through his veins at the idea of being caught by someone other than her is what propelled him off of the couch he’d been snoozing on. 

He threw on a clean set of clothes and laced up his shoes. There was a small bathroom in the garage, where he headed to brush his teeth and tame his bedhead. This place could basically be considered an apartment.

The sun was barely up, so it was still a little dark out. He’d be lying to himself if he said that he wasn’t nervous about seeing  _ her _ , too. If anyone came out here to find him, he’d want it to be her, otherwise he’d be busted, but his nerves got the better of him. He snuck out the side door and kicked his bike’s stand up, getting ready to leave.

A sound behind him startled him.

He turned around to see a small, feminine figure standing in what he assumed were pajamas and a fuzzy cardigan.  _ Julie _ . She wrapped her arms around herself in spite of the chilly California morning air.

He adjusted his posture and inched closer to her. He was still tired, having yet to rub the sleep from his eyes. He could’ve sworn this may have been a hallucination. 

“Good morning,” she greeted, her voice just above a whisper.

“Morning.” He replied. 

His voice was still husky from having woken up approximately 15 minutes ago. He cleared his throat in an attempt to sound less like a serial killer and more like a normal teenage boy. They shared a content silence for a few moments before he broke it.

“I uh, I’ll see you around.” He offered.

She nodded and gave him a small smile, which he happily returned. He hopped onto his bike and gave her one last look before taking off. 

He hoped that she didn’t take it personally. It’s not like he was purposefully avoiding  _ her _ , he was just trying to avoid getting caught. Avoiding any possible feelings just happened to be a nice little freebie in this situation. 

\---

  
  


The school day went by without any sort of usual hiccup that Julie felt  _ always _ happens in her life. No drama from Carrie, no anxiety revolving around the music program, and no weird boys hanging out in her garage. The last one was what brought her out to said garage for a different reason.

Luke’s words resonated with her and had been circulating through her head all day. This may have been the reason why there were no catastrophes today, she couldn’t be bothered to pay attention to them. 

_ “You just have to trust yourself. And when you’re ready, you’ll know it.” _

She found herself in her mom’s studio, tiptoeing around a sheet-covered piano. She and her mom would sit here for  _ hours _ and brainstorm. Sometimes, it wouldn’t even be about music. This was their special place to spend time together. When Julie was a kid, she’d sit out here and create fantasy worlds and stories with her mom.

She trailed a finger on top of the delicate fabric before taking a handful of it and throwing it to the ground in one swift motion. The sight of the actual instrument itself sent chills down her spine as she hesitated to take her place on the bench. On top of the piano was a familiar stack of papers.

_ “I’d love to hear you play it sometime, when you’re ready.” _

She set the sticky note off to the side and flipped through the papers one last time, eyeballing the other note from her mother. She let out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding and set the sheet music down, spreading them out in front of her. She sat down and took her place at the piano. A jolt of  _ life _ coursed through her as she lifted the lid off of the keys.

An upbeat melody came from the instrument as her fingers danced across the keys. To her, playing the piano was like riding a bike.

_ Here’s one thing, I want you to know.  _

_ You got some place to go.  _

Memories of her mom flooded her head, and instead of bringing out the tears and grief they usually did, inspiration took its place.

_ Life’s a test, yes, but you go toe-to-toe _ _  
_ _ You don’t give up, no, you grow. _

Julie always had a closer relationship with her mom than with her dad. It’s not that she and Ray didn’t get along, but Julie was practically a mini version of her mother. They connected in the best ways, one of them being music.

_ So get up, get out, relight that spark. _

_ You know the rest by heart. _

_ Wake up, wake up if it’s all you do _

_ Look out, look inside of you _

_ It’s not what you lost _

_ It’s what you’ll gain raising your voice to the rain _

Julie processed the lyrics as she sang them. She wasn’t sure when her mom wrote this song, but it wasn’t one they worked on together. She wonders if her mom knew that her eventual passing would lead her daughter to a downward spiral.

_ Wake up your dream and make it true _

_ Look out, look inside of you _

_ It’s not what you lost _

_ Relight that spark, time to come out of the dark _

_ Wake up, wake up _

Any time either of them had a bad day or just felt like they were in a funk, the two of them would come out here and let their minds and hearts go wild behind the piano. It was always the one thing that was practically a cure.

_ So wake that spirit, spirit _

_ I wanna hear it, hear it _

_ No need to fear it, you’re not alone _

_ You’re gonna find your way, oh _ _  
_ _  
_ Then it clicked. 

This was Julie’s mother giving her a sign that no matter what happens in life, you’ll always find a way to work through it. Music was  _ always  _ the way they had worked through anything, because even when they weren’t together, especially now, Julie would always feel connected to her mother through music.

While Julie was mid-performance, she was too concentrated on playing to hear the tires of a bike squeal as they came to a stop. Luke parked his 2-wheeled method of transportation on the side of the garage and stopped and listened, just to hear her play.

Her voice dropped in volume as she reached the end of the song.

_ Wake up, wake up if it’s all you do _ _  
_ _ Look out, look inside of you _

_ It’s not what you lost _

_ It’s what you’ll gain, raising your voice to the rain _

_ Wake up your dream and make it true _

_ Look out, look inside of you _

_ When you feel lost _

_ Relight that spark _

_ Time to come out of the dark _

_ Wake up, wake up _

She let out a content sigh and grabbed the paper with her mom’s note on it, clutching it close to her chest. A few tears slid down her cheeks, but not mournful ones. Happy ones.

She didn’t hear the side door of the studio open and close, as quiet as humanly possible for Luke, as he stepped in. The room felt brighter and warmer. No longer was this just some garage where a relative’s past hobbies sat to collect dust, but it truly felt like a creative space again.

“Julie…” he whispered.

He didn’t even know where to start. She was  _ incredible _ .

This broke her out of her trance. Her head shot up. She froze for a solid second before putting the sheet music down and launching herself at the boy in front of her. He let out a grunt and nearly toppled over as she collided with him. He steadied himself and embraced her as she snaked her arms around his body. She was just small enough to fit her head perfectly, almost too perfectly, under his chin. He’d let himself overthink this concept later.

For right now, all he could think about was the petite girl in his arms. The physical contact caused a weird feeling to become present. Warmth, but not from being  _ near  _ something warm. It felt like it was coming from inside.

After a few silent moments, they separated.

“Thank you, Luke. I can’t thank you enough.” She rambled, repeating herself over and over again.

He let out a chuckle.

“What are you thanking me for? I didn’t give you that amazing talent. That was all you, Jules.”

A wide smile covered her features and a slight blush dusted her cheeks at his compliment.

“Maybe not, but it was you that pushed me to trust myself. I don’t know what told me I was ready again, but I was. And I owe you everything for that.”

A blush covered his own face as pride swelled in his chest. He couldn’t take all the credit for her playing again, but he was certainly proud of her. 

“With talent like that, Mrs. Harrison will  _ have  _ to let you back into the music program.” Luke confirmed.

Julie’s smile instantly dropped. A look of distress took its place.

“I’ve already asked her to let me back in, remember? There’s no way she’ll let me back in, I’ll have to wait until next semester. And there’s a waiting list, so it’s not even guaranteed that she’ll let me back in.”

Luke’s jaw nearly hit the floor.

“Your voice? Your piano playing? Dude, you’re like a human wrecking ball.” Julie gave him a strange look. “What I’m saying is, you have the power to move people. To knock them off their feet! And there’s no way she wouldn’t let you back in if she heard you play like that.”

Julie let out a frustrated sigh as her head dropped into her hands.

“Are you even listening to me? I already asked. I have to wait until next semester.”

Luke scoffed and plopped down onto the couch he’d come to love. He made himself comfortable and turned to look at her.

“That was your first mistake: asking.” He sat for a moment in thought and laughed. “My boys and I, we’ve gotten gigs by  _ doing _ . We’ve played in front of clubs, we’ve played in the back of clubs.”

Julie gave him another strange look and cocked her head to the side.

“Your boys?” She repeated.

“Yeah. My two best friends, Alex and Reggie, and I are in a band. We’re called Sunset Curve. Tell your friends.” He said, adding a wink at the end.

“Yeah, let me explain to my friends that I discovered a boy and his band by letting him crash in my mom’s old studio after finding him like a stray cat.” She smarted.

This earned an eye roll out of Luke. He was not a stray cat.

“Anyways. I’m just saying, don’t ask for permission. Swing that wrecking ball of talent of yours at her head and smash those stupid rules right out of her brain!” He exclaimed, trying to pump Julie up.

He stood up at this point, trying to get her to look at him. He wasn’t about to let this girl ditch her incredible talent. He’d rather dig his own grave.

“This isn’t a club, Luke, it’s school. And they’re not just gonna let me back in.”

She tried to brush past him, but he stopped her by grabbing both of her wrists. He wasn’t holding on to her tight enough to keep her from moving. He was gentle, but it was enough to get her attention.

“If getting back into music is what you want, then you gotta go for it, Julie.”

They looked into each other’s eyes as he said this. As soon as the words left his mouth, he seemed to get a little lost in the dark brown pools of her eyes. She sighed and broke her arms out of his grip.

“You’re lying if you’re thinking about telling me that you don’t even have a song prepared. I invented lying, it doesn’t work on me.” He said, lightly tapping his fist against her arm in a mock-punch.

Julie looked down at her shoes a moment before reconnecting their locked gazes at each other. That small smile was creeping back on to her face.

“Thanks.” She muttered. “Again.”

It seemed like she had a lot to thank Luke for these days. Little did she know, that list would only grow longer in the coming days.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yayyyy Julie finally sang again! (Like this is a huge surprise, we've all seen the show. That's why we're here, amirite?) Aaaaaand Luke and Julie were having a moment about music :D and that Juke hug was for y'all. <3
> 
> Thank you guys so much for the support! This fic has 3k+ hits!! I'm so psyched. I can't wait for you guys to see what's in store for this!!


	8. Bright

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The big day: the day that Julie performs again to get her spot back!

Luke’s words riveted in her head.  _ You’re lying if you’re thinking about telling me you don’t have a song prepared.  _ She did, technically. She could sing  _ Wake Up _ , but honestly that song was a little too personal to sing in front of the entire school to get her spot back in the music program. 

She honestly couldn’t fathom singing  _ any  _ of the songs her and her mom wrote in front of the school.

Julie now lay on her bedroom floor, contemplating calling Flynn over for a late-night pep talk. She hadn’t even told Flynn about her new plan yet, thanks to Luke, but she felt like she could rely on her anyways. As she unlocked her phone and pulled up the app to her most recent calls, a noise startled her.

She froze and listened. 

_ Tap. Tap tap.  _

She shot straight up as she tried to pinpoint the location of the noise. 

_ Tap.  _

The tapping got louder as she inched towards her bedroom window.  _ Not a bad place to start,  _ Julie thought.  _ Maybe it’ll be an escape route if I have to.  _ She approached her window and looked out into the pitch black night sky. 

Nothing. 

She let out a sigh, ready to give up. Something small was launched at her window, making the same tapping noise. She jumped what felt like six feet in the air.

_ “Jesus!”  _ She gasped.

She looked out at the yard below her window, nearly jumping out of her skin at the sight of a figure looking up at her. It was nearly too dark for anything to be visible, but her house had a lamp post next to it that shed a little bit of light on whoever was down there. Once she could make out a few details, she gasped. 

“Luke?” She asked no one in particular. 

It’s not like he could hear her through the window. He waved at her and motioned for her to come outside. She threw her arms out in front of her in a sort of ‘ _ what the fuck’  _ way. She groaned and held up one finger, as if to say ‘ _ one moment’.  _ The boy outside her window nodded and waited. 

Julie snuck out of her room, listening for any signs that her dad or brother might be awake. 

Silence. 

Perfect. She had no idea what the hell Luke could possibly want at this hour, but it had to be somewhat important, she supposed. She crept out the front door, careful to avoid the floorboard that creaked loud enough to wake the dead. When she got outside, she found Luke in the same spot he was in, waiting for her to show back up at her window. 

_ “Psst!”  _ She whispered.

He turned his head in her direction, once again allowing that amazing smile to cover his face as he made his way toward her. He had a folded up paper in his hand. 

“You bonehead, what are you doing in my yard at this time of night? It’s-“ she paused to check the phone in her pocket. “11:38!”

He held out his hands in front of him in a protective manner.

“Ok, yes I know it’s late, but this is important, Jules! I couldn’t sleep and I was thinking about you. I mean, er- I was thinking about your performance to get you back into music class.” He explained, quickly recovering. 

He was thankful for how dark it was. There was no way she would be able to see the blush that currently resided on his cheeks. 

“Ok, what about it?” She interrogated.

“Well, I have this song. It’s called “Bright”. It’s a Sunset Curve song that I wrote and we never got to record, but it’s perfect for your range. Check out the chorus for a second. If you add a little bit of piano, I’m telling you…” Luke began to sing a small portion of the song, encouraging Julie to join him.

He handed the folded sheet of paper to her. She unfolded it to find lyrics covered in notes and other small doodles. 

_ “And rise through the night, you and I. We will fight to shine together, bright forever.” _

He repeated the line.

“And go up high-”

_ “Bright forever!” _ Julie did as instructed, making Luke smile.

“Yes!” He said, chuckling.

They shared a comfortable silence. Luke’s mind was blown. He knew she was talented since he heard her singing in her mom’s studio, but this completely raised the bar for her.

She let out a sigh and smiled.

“Thanks, Luke. I’ll be honest, I didn’t really wanna do something that my mom and I wrote together. They’re too special for that.” 

Luke nodded understandingly.

“Hey, well, speaking of the guys, I kind of told them about you.” 

Julie perked up. 

“You did?” She asked, bewildered. He shrugged. 

“Well, not entirely, but I’m going to. I’ll leave out the personal stuff like your mom and uh-“ 

“Like you crashing in my garage?” She finished. 

They both chuckled at the statement.

“Well,” he said, exaggerating the length of the word. “They already know about that, but they don’t know it was you.” 

They shared a comfortable silence for a moment and Luke found himself almost getting lost in those beautiful eyes again. Not lost, he’d never admit that, but maybe just starting to wander. He caught himself slipping and cleared his throat, eventually breaking eye contact. 

“Well um, I better get back inside. Y’know, before my dad notices I’m gone,” She stuttered. 

“Uh, right. That’s probably best.” 

Luke rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet as he shoved his hands in his pockets. Julie offered him a smile. 

“Goodnight, Luke.” 

He returned it with one of his own. 

“Goodnight, Julie.” 

She spent the rest of the night and the following morning reading and re-reading the lyrics, hellbent on perfecting the song. It was special to her. Maybe not in the same sense as the songs she did with her mom, but  _ Luke  _ gave her this song, so it was special in a different way to her.

  
  
  
  


It was now Friday, and Julie was half-conscious at a table in the library, trying to complete some assignment for her math class. She hated math and could hardly focus on it when she was well-rested, let alone on the verge of knocking out.

_ This is what I get for staying up practicing the song _ , she thought to herself.

That’s another reason why she couldn’t focus. Not only was she worrying herself sick about bombing the song, she couldn’t get the goofy boy that gave it to her out of her head. It’s like he somehow found a way to rent some free space in her brain.

She set her head down on the table and let out a groan, earning her a stern look from the librarian. She offered a half-assed apologetic look before sighing, propping her chin up on her wrist, and getting back to work. It wouldn’t stay like this for very long though, because as if she manifested the boy himself, Luke strutted into the library and beelined for her table. He approached her and noticed she was in a daze, because she had yet to acknowledge him. He walked to the other side of the table and leaned over, putting his face a few inches in front of hers.

“Whatcha thinkin’ about?”

This snapped her back into reality, causing a loud gasp to escape her mouth. She nearly launched herself backwards in an attempt to put some distance between the two of them, earning some chuckles from the two boys next to him. She hadn’t even had time to acknowledge them yet.

“Luke!” She shouted in a whisper.

He pulled out the chair he had been standing at and encouraged the guys to do the same.

“Hey Jules! These are my boys Alex and Reggie.”

The two boys chorused their own greetings. She leaned over the table and whacked Luke’s arm. His lack of sleeves on  _ anything _ he owned made his arms incredibly vulnerable. And pleasing to the eye. Not that she’d ever admit that, though.

“You shithead! Are we going to completely ignore the fact that you nearly gave me a heart attack?!” She shot back, using the same angered tone.

His face softened for a moment.

“Alright, alright, it was a dick move. I’m sorry. My boys and I were walking by and we happened to see you in here, so I thought I’d come say hi and introduce them to you.” He explained, flailing his arms around to better tell his story.

She now took a good look at Alex and Reggie, offering a  _ hello _ and waving at them. Alex was the tallest of the group, she could tell even while he was sitting. He wore a hoodie that was probably a size or two too big and a backwards baseball cap. Reggie was clad in a sharp leather jacket and a snug white t-shirt underneath. She took a moment to mentally note that while the boys seemed to be best friends, they all definitely had their own personality.

“It’s nice to finally put some faces to names,” Julie offered.

“Aw, he talks about us. How sweet!” Reggie said, putting a hand to his chest.

Luke rolled his eyes before focusing his attention back on Julie.

“I was just telling the guys about how you’re gonna perform “Bright” and absolutely crush it. We’re all rooting for you.” 

“Yeah, we haven’t heard you sing yet, but if Luke swears by it, then it’s gotta be good,” Alex said, looking to Reggie for approval on his statement.

He nodded.

“Oh for sure, Luke is one of the biggest music snobs out there! What was that string of words you used to describe that kid with the guitar in music class? ‘Overrated Tom Petty Wanna-be,’ I think it was. Absolutely classic.” Reggie informed, patting Luke on the shoulder.

“The cute blonde guy? Nick?” Julie supplied.

For whatever reason, hearing her call that guy cute was like a punch in the gut.

“Yeah sure, that sounds about right. Or maybe it was Terry.” Reggie thought, teetering back and forth.

“I think  _ Nick _ is pretty talented, actually. He just picked up guitar this year, in fact.” She said, almost getting defensive. 

She may or may not have had a small crush on him since middle school, so she had the right to be defensive, right?  _ Right?  _ Alright, maybe not. 

“ _ Ametuer _ .” Luke said, faking a cough to cover up his insult.

“Alright, you guys can put the rulers away, some of us have better things to discuss in life.” Alex warned, annoyed by the banter.

He wasn’t  _ super  _ annoyed, he was only agitated at Luke for not acknowledging the obvious. His friend was painfully oblivious to how jealous he got over Julie complimenting another guy, let alone another  _ guitar player _ .

“Look, I’m just saying that I’m the best guitar player in this school- no, in this  _ city _ . Julie just has yet to realize it,” Luke jabbed, sitting back in his chair and looking at Julie with an expecting look.

“I’ve never even heard you  _ play _ , you doofus.” She retorted.

It was true, she’d never heard him play or sing before. He had to be good, there’s no way he wasn’t.

“We can fix that.” He replied.

He’d always jump at an opportunity to show off his skills when it comes to the band, but for a pretty girl? That’s a no brainer for him. He wasn’t about to dwell on the fact that he linked ‘pretty girl’ and ‘Julie’ together in this head, he’d do that later.

“Maybe one of these days I’ll take you up on that.” She teased.

  
  
  


The hours of the morning seemed to fly by, and Julie felt nowhere near ready enough to perform in front of the school, but she didn’t have any other options. She marched to the music room and came to a halt when met with a most empty classroom. Empty except for Flynn, who sat in a plastic chair, playing the trumpet terribly.

“What are you doing? And… where is everyone?” Julie asked, feeling the sudden inspiration and confidence drain out of her.

Flynn let out an over-dramatic sigh.

“Spirit assembly. I was kinda blowing it off because I didn’t feel very… spirit-y.” She answered glumly. 

Julie sighed, feeling defeated. This caused Flynn to perk up, wondering what had gotten her best friend so down.

“You okay?” She asked, concerned. Julie shook her head.

“Not really. I had this new plan to play for Mrs. Harrison, hoping that she’d let me back in, but… I guess I missed my chance.”

Julie was ready to give up, call it a day, and go home. She could deal with the repercussions of ditching school from her father later. Right now, she just wanted to hide under a blanket. Flynn jumped out of her chair.

“No, you didn’t.” She said, beaming.

She strutted out of the music classroom and motioned for Julie to follow her. She trotted behind the other girl, curiosity getting the best of her. 

“Flynn, where are we going?” She pleaded.

Music could be heard from the halls as they neared their destination. It sounded over-autotuned and like some sort of Disney channel bootleg pop group, filling the building with an excess amount of  _ whoa’s _ and  _ oh’s _ . Flynn stayed silent but kept a large smile on her face as she and Julie stood at the door of the gymnasium.

“The pep rally?” Julie asked.

“Yep. And look who spent all of her daddy’s money on costumes and Katy Perry’s choreographer.” She sneered.

Julie shoved her hands in her pockets and sighed. Carrie and the rest of Dirty Candy were dancing and marching in the middle of the gym, clad in gaudy, glittery, color-coded outfits. They danced in unison as they belted out the narcissistic lyrics to one of Carrie’s songs.

“Well, it paid off.”

They watched as the performance continued. Julie eyeballed the audience, seeing Nick and his fellow football players cheer on the show.  _ Poor guy, _ she thought. He was too sweet and kind to be stuck with someone like that polyester-covered demon. Her eyes continued roaming until she saw Luke, Alex and Reggie off to the side. 

Luke waved and gave her a thumbs up. He kept mouthing something. 

_ “Go! You got this.” _

Dirty Candy finished their performance, causing the room to fill with cheers and shouts from the crowd. Carrie opened her mouth and began spouting off something about herself, but Julie couldn’t be bothered to listen. The crowd cheered again as she and her posse walked away.

“Thank you, Dirty Candy!” The principal announced, walking out into the center of the gym.

Flynn pushed Julie’s shoulder.

“Now’s your chance! Go talk to her. See you in music class!” Flynn said, confident in her friend.

She walked away, leaving Julie on her own. She looked back to where Luke was, seeing his spot vacant. Reggie and Alex were still there, but they weren’t looking over at her.

“Jules!” A voice called.

It was Luke. He was standing off to the side of the bleachers where the students had been crowded, and were now filing out. He was there ready to encourage her if she needed it. The principal droned on about a few more things before students started getting up to leave.

“What are you waiting for? You’re gonna rock it, there’s a piano on that stage with your name on it.” He informed, pointing to a side stage with dimmed lighting. 

She sighed. He was right. She made her way towards it and hopped up on stage, beginning to play around with the keyboard. A light appeared, shining on her. She hit a few keys and stopped, uncertain. She looked to Luke one more time. He was there, nodding and smiling. 

She began playing again.

_ Sometimes I think I’m falling down _

_ I wanna cry, I’m calling out _

_ For one more try to feel alive _

Her nerves were higher than ever. Students slowly stopped walking and noticed her. The more people that stopped, the more confident she felt, but she wasn’t sure if it was enough.

_ And when I feel lost and alone _

_ I know that I can make it home _

_ Fight through the dark and find the spark _

As she was beginning to get caught up in her music, she failed to notice the boys getting set up on stage behind her. Luke grabbed an electric guitar that resided on stage and quickly tuned it. Alex jumped onto a vacant drum set and readied himself as Reggie took his place on the stage as well.

_ Life is a risk, but I will take it _

_ Close my eyes and jump _

_ Together I think that we can make it, _

_ Come on, let’s run _

As Julie’s voice ended the first verse, Luke counted down from three, signaling the boys to begin playing with her. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t even know that they were there until she heard them jamming with her. She looked out into the audience to see more students crowding around the small stage. Mrs. Harrison tapped the principal on the shoulder and pointed towards her, talking to her about something as she nodded her head towards the stage. Julie couldn’t make out what she was saying due to her own sound, but she saw her teacher’s lips form the name  _ Julie _ .

Her voice nearly caught in her throat as anxiety began to wash over her. She missed the start of the next lines, but Luke caught them and began to sing.

_ In times that I doubted myself _

_ I felt like I needed some help _

_ Stuck in my head with nothing left _

She made her way over to him on the stage, smiling the biggest smile she could as she jammed with the boy that gave her her inspiration back. His voice and guitar playing skills were so much more than she imagined. Julie was impressed- no, stunned. 

_ I feel something around me now _

_ So unclear, lifting me out _

_ I found the ground, I’m marching on _

His voice carried the words with ease as he belted the chorus, sending goosebumps over Julie’s arms. Luke’s voice was truly amazing, it’s a shock that he and the rest of Sunset Curve hadn’t hit it big yet.

Nick made his way to the front of the crowd, just a few feet away from Julie. He caught her eyes and smiled at her, clapping and cheering just like he did for Carrie’s performance. She felt herself glowing a little bit before continuing the duet with Luke. The she-devil herself pushed her way to the front as well, obviously not pleased that her boyfriend was cheering on Julie and the band’s show.

_ And rise through the night, you and I _

_ We will fight to shine together, bright forever _

_ And rise through the night, you and I _

_ We will fight to shine together, bright forever _

The crowd was practically eating out of their hands at this point. Mrs. Harrison stood at the back of the crowd smiling as pride beamed off of her. She knew Julie had the talent, she just had to get back into the swing of things. Even the principal seemed to be bobbing her head along to the beat of the song, a small smile apparent on her lips.

The sound of instruments dropped in volume as Luke repeated his verse, getting near the end of the song. As he sang, Julie made her way over to him, and offered her microphone instead. The adrenaline coursing through his veins was like none he’d felt before, belting the song out into the same microphone as her. They kept eye contact through the verse until the beat of the song picked up again.

The song ended, repeating the last line a few times. The gymnasium erupted in cheers and clapping from the students as Julie and the boys walked to the front of the stage to take a bow. As the clapping began to subside, the principal got to the front of the crowd.

“Ok, people. The show’s over. Let’s get back to class please!.” She called.

Students began to file out of the gym, leaving Carrie and her girls exposed to their surroundings. By the tone in her voice, it seemed that the pink-wigged girl was berating the rest of her group for enjoying the show that was just put on. 

Julie began to get down from the stage to meet Mrs. Harrison and the principal as the boys slipped off the stage and disappeared. She immediately began apologizing.

“Mrs. Harrison, I’m so sorry for not asking for permission. I just wanted to show you I belong here.” She begged. Again.

“As amazing as that was,” she started. Julie held her breath. “We both know your spot has already been taken. I wish that I could help you but my hands are tied.”

Julie began to feel the familiar feeling of disappointment that was making itself more and more known in her life. 

“Mine aren’t.” 

Both of their heads turned to look at the principal as she walked towards them

“As much as I didn’t approve of this little  _ stunt _ that you pulled, I will not go down as the principal that kicked Julie Molina out of the music program.” She declared, folding her hands.

Julie gasped and giggled, shocked by her response.

“Thank you!” She cried.

The principal smiled and nodded, walking away. Julie turned back to look at her teacher, who had the brightest look on her face.

“Congratulations! Welcome back.” She cheered, hugging the young girl.

Mrs. Harrison composed herself and walked away, still smiling. Julie watched her for a moment before being met with a false smile. Flynn.

“Wow. You did it,” she said, appearing less than impressed.

“Thanks to you.” Julie confirmed, motioning towards her friend.

Something wasn’t right. Flynn looked very disappointed, and she couldn’t quite pinpoint the reasoning behind her sour mood. A frown overtook her features.

“Hey, you ok?” The singer asked.

“Uh- yeah, I’m great,” Flynn started. She cleared her throat and pointed towards the stage. “What happened to that guy just being your partner for a class or something? I didn’t realize you were in a band.”

Oh  _ shit _ .

Flynn was hurt. Badly. Julie could feel it radiating off of the other girl.

“Oh, uh- it was just one song. It’s their band. Um.” She said, failing to lie. Flynn ignored her excuse.

“Why have you been keeping those cute boys a secret?”

She froze. What the hell was she supposed to tell her?  _ “Hey yeah, by the way, a cute boy broke into my mom’s studio and crashed for a few nights because his home life isn’t so good.”?  _

“Flynn, I-” She stuttered, only to be cut off.

“Since when did we start keeping things from each other, Jules?”

She was lost and stuck at the same time. Stuttered noises came out of her mouth. She had no idea what to say. She shrugged and looked down at the floor. Flynn let out an angry sigh and took off, running out of the gym. Julie called after her and tried to chase her, but she got away. The boys reappeared shortly after.

“Julie, that was  _ killer! _ ” Luke complimented.

She offered him a weak smile and kicked at the ground, scuffing her shoe. Reggie lifted his hand for high fives all around. Alex and Luke responded, but Julie didn’t.

“Yeah, it probably killed my friendship with Flynn.”

The guys all froze. Alex was the first one to speak up.

“Wait, what? Why?”

Julie shrugged lamely and tried to think of the best way to explain this.

“I haven’t really found the time to tell her about you guys. She asked me about Luke the other day, and I told her that he was just some guy in my class that I got partnered up with for a project.” She explained.

_ Ouch. _ That stung Luke slightly, and he wasn’t sure why. 

When they were all on stage, Luke felt like they all bonded. He especially felt like he bonded with Julie, particularly during that bit with sharing the microphone. He was hoping she had felt the same, but now he wasn’t too sure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oooo how will this situation play out in this AU considering the boys aren't ghosts? What do y'all think, I wanna hear those theories!!
> 
> Y'all, I was so excited to write this chapter. I started brainstorming it at work on Friday and Saturday. Also hello longest chapter???? Thanks so much for the love and kudos, see ya soon!


	9. Flying Solo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Honestly I really like slapping the name of the songs from the show as the chapter title when they feature. I don't know why but it just makes me smile.
> 
> Julie learns to open up to all of her friends and Flynn finally gets some answers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! I know I fell off the grid for longer than I usually do, but I figured y'all would understand. With the holidays going on and everything, I hope everyone had a safe holiday, whichever one(s) you celebrate! I got a Sunset Curve shirt from my boyfriend and JATP stickers from my best internet friend so I'm certainly vibing ;-; I hope this long ass chapter makes up for my absence, I can't wait to get cracking on chapter 10!

Julie had hardly slept the past couple of nights. The only thing her mind could wander to was if she’d completely lost her best friend in this whole situation. She’d just gotten home from school and found a comfy spot on the studio couch when there was a knock on the door.

“Come in!” She grumbled, voice muffled by a decorative pillow.

The door creaked, signaling that someone walked in. She looked up to see her dad standing in the doorway, and returned her face’s place in the pillow.

“Hey,  _ mija _ . You ok?” Ray asked.

She groaned into the pillow. He nodded and understood that that’s pretty much the best he’s gonna get as far as answers go. 

“Alright, well, if I can do anything, let me know.” 

The door squeaked again, leaving Julie alone again.

She had no idea how she was going to make it up to Flynn. She understood why her best friend was upset, but where could she even begin to explain? She started playing music again because  _ some guy _ made her feel inspired again.

As she got lost in her thoughts, the door replicated the same noise. Sooner or later, that squeaking was going to give her a headache. She groaned into the pillow, assuming her dad had come in to check on her again.

“Well, nice to see you, too.”

Her head shot up and towards the sound of a voice that was  _ not  _ her dad’s. Julie’s eyes met with the warm brown ones of a familiar guitar player.

“Luke? What are you doing here?” She questioned.

She hadn’t been expecting him to show up. After school let out, she just wanted to go home and grovel in her own self-pity. 

“Well, I just-  _ we _ just wanted to check up on you and make sure you’re ok.” He said, stepping away from the slightly ajar door, revealing Alex and Reggie behind him.

Julie pushed herself up off of the couch and waved at the other two boys. They filed into the studio and made themselves comfy, taking a seat on any surface area deemed suitable as a chair. Julie let out an agitated sigh as the boys all looked to her, waiting for her to speak.

“I just feel so stupid! I kept you guys from my  _ best friend _ . What kind of best friend does that? Honestly, I’ll be lucky if Flynn ever speaks to me again.” 

She dropped her head into her hands. A moment later, she felt the couch cushion next to her dip. She didn’t look up, but she peeked through her fingers to see Luke’s infamous scuffed canvas shoes on the floor next to her brightly colored sneakers. He nudged her shoulder with his own.

“Y’know, usually when two girls end up fighting over me, it’s nothing like this.” Reggie quipped, looking to Alex for approval.

Alex rolled his eyes as Julie picked up a couch pillow and chucked it at the brunette’s head.

“Quit it! I’m being serious. I couldn’t tell her about you guys the same way I can’t tell my dad. He’s so worried that I’m gonna end up in the wrong crowd or something, and letting some random guy crash in the studio is not exactly what he’s expecting of me. Ever since…” She trailed off.

She wasn’t sure how much of her personal life the other two boys knew about, but she was hoping Luke kept the stuff about her mom to himself. She looked at the boys in question, and judging by the puzzled looks on their faces, she was right. Luke placed his hand gingerly on her knee, urging her to look him in the eye. He hoped that his expression could translate what he was thinking.

_ “I didn’t tell them, and you don’t have to until you’re ready.” _

She nodded, and he hoped that she understood what he was getting at. She bumped his shoulder with hers in return, as a way of thanking him. The two almost forgot that there were others in the room, as she cleared her throat as a way to clear the air of any awkwardness. 

“I just don’t know how to go about telling them. Flynn will be an easier case than my dad, though. To be honest, he might shit a brick.”

All three boys nodded, understanding the situation might be kind of weird.

“Well, could Flynn keep a secret? Surely, you guys have shared everything with each other before this, right?” Alex suggested.

Julie nodded and furrowed her eyebrows, signaling for him to explain.

“What if you just told her the truth? I mean, what are the chances that she’d actually run screaming to your dad?”

Honestly, it wasn’t a bad idea. She wasn’t super concerned that Flynn was going to snitch on her anymore, there was a bigger elephant in the room. How was she ever going to get Flynn to  _ talk  _ to her again, let alone keep her secrets safe?

“Not a bad plan, I’ll give you that,” she started. Alex nodded his thanks. “But, how do I get her to even acknowledge me again? I practically don’t exist, she won’t even respond to my texts anymore!”

Luke sighed. Julie’s bad mood was making him almost feel the same way. She was such a vibrant person, it was literally the biggest buzzkill to see her down. He began racking his brain for ideas before letting out a groan.

“I feel so useless in these situations. I don’t have problem solving skills, my brain only functions on music!” Luke whined, half-joking.

Reggie perked up as soon as he said that. The cogs in his head began whirring.

“That’s it!  _ Music _ .” He exclaimed.

“I’m not following.” Julie said, visibly confused.

“Music means a lot to both of you guys, right? That’s how you can get her attention. If she refuses to see you, then she’ll have to  _ hear  _ you.”

Alex clapped a hand on Reggie’s back, encouraging him.

“That’s what I’m  _ talking _ about, Reginald. Nicely done!” Alex applauded. 

As the boys congratulated and high-fived, Julie’s mind instantly ran to her writing notebook. Honestly, she hadn’t touched it in a long time, but she had something in there that might work. She got up from her spot and made her way over to a nearly-forgotten bookshelf. It appeared to be filled with mostly learner’s workbooks to music and other guides, but wedged in between them was her notebook.

She plucked it off of the shelf and returned next to Luke on the couch. She opened the notebook and flew past pages of scribbles and lyrics that she and her room brainstormed together.  _ Now is definitely not the time for a tear-full memory lane. _ Finally, she landed on the page she was looking for.

“What’s that?” Luke asked, leaning closer to get a better look.

“It’s just my writing notebook. Whenever I used to get ideas, I’d jot them down in here and brainstorm with my mom.” She explained.

As Luke looked over her shoulder, the words written down immediately stunned him. She was  _ talented _ . The girl next to him not only was a vocal powerhouse, but her creative flow of lyrics was something he’d never seen before.

“It’s nice that you and your mom can bond over writing music.” Reggie spoke, innocently. 

Julie’s focus on her notebook broke as she avoided eye contact with anyone in the room. Luke’s hand returned to her knee, trying to reassure her that everything is ok. Julie cleared her throat.

“Used to. Um... She passed away about a year ago.”

The air in the room suddenly became icy cold. No one spoke a word as the boys frantically made eye contact with each other, not sure how to handle the situation. Well, Luke kind of knew.

“Julie, I-,” Reggie started. He didn’t even know where to begin.

“We’re so sorry for your loss. We didn’t know.” Alex finished.

She nodded. She didn’t really expect them to know. Luke gently rested his forehead on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. She shook her head to clear her mind of those painful memories and returned her focus to the notebook. Luke was the first one to speak.

“Julie, these are some killer lyrics. How come you’ve been hiding your writing skills from me?” He jested.

“I guess hiding things from people is my new hobby these days,” she said, the cold joke hitting a little too close to home. “But this was a poem I wrote about Flynn, actually. She really helped me through all the stuff with my mom. I don’t know where I would be without her.”

He was shocked at her response, but quickly recovered.

“I mean, you could turn this into a song for Flynn? We could- I mean, if you’ll have us, we could help you piece it together.” He suggested.

Luke wasn’t sure why he was suddenly so nervous and aware of his presence, but he didn’t want to make Julie uncomfortable. He hoped that she would let him and the boys help her, though. He  _ hated _ seeing her all torn up over the whole situation, and he felt that it was kind of his fault. The least he could do was offer his support.

Julie shrugged at the idea before closing the notebook and tossing it on the coffee table in front of them. She sighed and leaned back into the couch, crossing her arms.

“I don’t know. This notebook kinda has my whole heart spilled into it, I don’t know if I’m ready to let anyone else see it.” She pouted.

“Come on, Jules, you’re wicked talented. This is solid proof of that, and it’s just what you need to win Flynn back.” Luke pressed.

She shrugged again and remained silent. He lurched forward and grabbed her notebook, knowing it would cause a reaction from her. He jumped up and dashed to the other side of the studio before she could retaliate.

“Luke! That’s private, give it back!”

She rushed towards him, and he jumped back, circling around the piano.

“No! Hey, you need to realize how insanely talented you are and how that’ll help you get back on Flynn’s good side. Ok?”

He jumped up on the piano and got on his knees, leaning towards the girl in front of him. He flipped through the pages before landing on the poem about Flynn. He chose to ignore the other pages that had curly letters and hearts at the top.

“No more wallowing. Listen to this.” He begged. “If somebody hurts you-”

He was cut off by Julie trying to snatch the notebook from his hands. He reeled back and hid it behind his back, having already memorized the lyrics he was working with. He looked deep into Julie’s eyes with one hand supporting him on the piano and the other behind up. A light blush covered her cheeks at the sight before her.

_ If somebody hurts you, I’m gonna get hurt, too _

_ And my life, my life would be real low, zero _

_ Flying solo _

“It’s a killer melody.” Luke pleaded.

He realized the position he was in on top of the piano, practically towering over the petite girl. He got down and handed the notebook back to her. Julie let out a sigh.

“I don’t know, guys. I’ll think about it. I just need to clear my head about all this Flynn stuff. I feel like my brain is going to explode.” She said and started pacing.

Luke approached her, blocking her path. She stopped.

“Hey, we’ll get out of here and let you do your thing. Just, don’t forget about the song, ok? Here, give me your phone.” He spoke softly.

She hesitantly pulled her phone out of her pocket and handed it to him.

“What are you-” she tried.

“I’m just putting my number in here in case you need m- us. Y’know, in case you need us for song-related things. Reggie is practically a walking thesaurus.” He stuttered, spitting out a white lie.

“This is true, I am a fiend for synonyms.” Reggie piped up, offering Julie a warm smile.

Luke returned the phone to her. She nodded and pocketed it, thanking the guys as they left. The boys filed out exactly how they came in. Earlier in the day, they learned that Reggie lives a few streets over from Julie, so as they exited the studio, they made their way towards his house.

“Nice cover on your slip up in there, by the way.” Alex teased.

“Oh, shut up.” Luke responded, shoving his friend's shoulder.

\---

Julie hung out in the studio for about an hour or so, switching between staring at the ceiling and sending unopened texts to Flynn. Eventually, she sighed and got up, heading towards the house. As she made her way up the cobblestone steps, a figure caught her eye. She gasped.

“Flynn!” 

She rushed towards her somewhat-ex-bestfriend. Flynn stopped what she was doing and turned to face her. The same unamused look returned to her face. She adjusted the bookbag on her back as Julie approached her.

“Where have you been? I’ve been looking everywhere for you.” Julie asked.

“Clearly not everywhere, because here I am.” The other girl responded. 

Julie scoffed.

“I’ve been texting you all day! You could have at least responded.” She pleaded.

“If I wanted to, I would have. I was just leaving this, I won’t need it anymore.” Flynn’s voice was laced with pain.

She pulled a crumpled up t-shirt out of her bag and offered it to Julie. On the shirt read  _ Double Trouble _ , the official name for their unofficial duo. They’d talked about it since they were kids.

“I’m not taking it.” Julie said firmly.

“Fine, then I’ll just give it to Goodwill. Though, I’m not sure if they accept things that are riddled with so much betrayal.” She said, coldly.

“Look, Flynn, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. But I need you to know how important you are to me! I never would’ve made it through this year if it wasn’t for you.”

Flynn smirked, still not pleased by her response.

“Yeah, but it was three strangers that got you back into music, so maybe  _ they  _ can help you get through the next year instead. I don’t need someone in my life that lies and keeps things from me.”

Julie’s breath hitched. She didn’t really have a response for that.

“Goodbye, Julie,” Flynn announced as she tried to roughly brush past her.

Julie’s arm shot out and grabbed her friend’s shoulder. She wasn’t about to let their friendship end over some petty fight like this.

“Would you just let me explain?” She demanded.

Flynn was silent, but she stayed put. Julie took that as an opportunity to speak.

“I’ll tell you everything if you just sit still for a moment, and quit trying to bite my head off.” 

More silence. She nodded, so that was something.

“One of the guys has kinda been staying with me, but my dad doesn’t know it. That’s why they’ve been around me so much lately.” 

Flynn’s eyes nearly bugged out of her head. She shook her head and pulled her phone out, tapping at the screen rapidly.

“Who are you texting?” Julie asked, bewildered.

“Your dad! You can’t actually think you’re sneaking a grown ass man into the house without him knowing. What if he tries something? Boys are pigs, you know better.” She retorted.

Julie snatched her friend’s phone out of her hands.

“What are you, my parent? Will you quit being so difficult? I’m trying to be honest with you, dipshit!”

Flynn huffed at her insult. She could be stubborn, that much is certain.

“Meet me at my mom’s studio in an hour and I’ll explain everything.” Julie pled. 

After a few anxiety-ridden moments of silence and the same stern look on her face, Flynn finally agreed. Julie returned the phone to her and raced to the studio, having to call the guys back here immediately. She scrolled through her contacts, hoping that Luke put his name in as something normal so she didn’t have to hunt him down. There was no time for goofing off right now.

Finally, she came across his contact name, which made her turn bright red. It was normal, for the most part. It  _ was  _ his name, he just slapped a winking emoji next to it. She had a feeling he was definitely one of those guys that was lowkey flirty with every girl. She texted him frantically.

_ It’s Julie. Need you guys back at the studio ASAP!!! _

He responded almost immediately. He hoped she had found his little ‘surprise’ with his contact name.

_ Be there in 5. U ok? _

She didn’t have time to respond, she needed to get to writing for Flynn’s song immediately. She chucked her phone on the couch and dove right into her notebook, scribbling down words and jotting ideas. After a few minutes of brainstorming, she heard someone fiddling with the studio door. Finally, Luke barged in, out of breath. Alex and Reggie were a few meters behind him at a less-frantic pace.

“Jules! What happened?”

She chose to ignore the fact that he looked like he ran here, and began to explain everything with Flynn. She decided that the boys probably had a one-sided race, most likely suggested by the boy who couldn’t seem to catch his breath. They needed to come up with lyrics and music for this song  _ fast _ . 

Luke sat down at the piano and waved for Julie to join him. They immediately started bouncing ideas off of each other, replacing words with more detailed synonyms and adding catchier vocals to the tunes Luke had already come up with. After roughly 45 minutes, they finally had a concise piece of music to play.

“Ok, Flynn should be here any minute. I’m so nervous!” Julie exclaimed, shaking her hands in front of her, hoping that’ll get some of the jitters out of her system.

“Julie, you’re gonna do great. We’re right here with you.” Alex offered. 

After a few more moments of Julie double-checking and triple-checking, there was a knock on the door. She shot up and ran to answer it.

“I’ll be right back, guys. Get ready.” 

Julie cracked the door open and slipped out, shutting it behind her. She was face-to-face with Flynn, who was giving her a weird look. 

“You’re acting weirder than usual. And that’s saying something.”

Julie sighed, ready to get this over with.

“Yes, I know, I’m weird as hell. Look, thanks for coming.”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re humbled to be in my presence. Come on. This better be good.” 

Julie grabbed Flynn’s hand and dragged her into the studio before she could protest. Even if she was mad at her, her goofy personally still showed. As Flynn took a look around the studio she noticed the boys.

“Oh good, your new best friends are here, too?” She quipped.

Julie groaned and pulled a chair up.

“Oh, shut up, will you? Sit your happy ass down for a moment.” Julie replied.

Flynn scoffed and looked at the guys again. There was a tall blonde boy behind a large drum kit. He had piercing light eyes and a strong jawline. He nodded at her in acknowledgement. She nodded back. There was a lanky boy standing by a microphone, holding a guitar. He was clad in a leather jacket and metal chains. He was too focused on his instrument to pay attention to her. The last boy was muscular, and his DIY sleeveless t-shirts accentuated that. He had a bright orange beanie on his head that matched the strap of his guitar.

For a moment, Flynn thought he may have been looking at her, but when she followed his line of sight, it led to Julie. His eyes were clouded and his body was relaxed as he watched the girl set her keyboard up to perform. His focus on Julie broke as he noticed someone watching him. His line of sight went to Flynn as she narrowed her eyes at him.

His neck and cheeks turned slightly red. He’d definitely been caught looking at Julie, and Flynn knew it too. He nodded at her and feigned focus on his guitar.

“The guys and I took a poem I wrote about you and put it to music,” Julie spoke. “I hope you like it.”

Flynn was shocked. She was definitely not expecting an apology performance. 

Julie started off by tapping a beat on her keyboard and getting it to repeat.

_ If I leave you on a bad note,  _

_ Leave you on a sad note _

_ Guess that means I’m buying lunch that day. _

Flynn sat back in the chair and tried to hide her smile at the lyrics. Julie was talented, and Flynn had always applauded her friend for that.

_ I know all your secrets _

_ You know all my deep-dish _

_ Guess that means that some things, they never _

_ They never change _

_ We both know what I, what I _

_ What I mean _

_ When I look at you, it’s like I’m looking at me _

It was hard to keep a resting face as she listened closely to the lyrics. The two girls had more in common than anyone they’d ever met before. This was what kept them so close and what kept their friendship flourishing for years.

_ My life, my life would be real low, zero _

_ Flying solo _

_ My life, my life would be real low, zero  _

_ Flying solo without you _

The smile broke out onto Flynn’s face and radiated through the entire studio. Julie’s face matched hers, wearing a delighted grin. Flynn looked around at the guys as they performed. They all had microphones and chorused with her. Julie stepped away from her keyboard and knelt down next to her friend as she sang.

_ You know who I’m likin’ way before I liked them, duh _

_ ‘Cause you liked them first _

She subtly shifted her sight to Luke, who wasn’t expecting her to give him a knowing look. The same red color appeared on his features. Flynn could read someone like an open book, no matter how good they thought they were at hiding things. This easily included him.

_ If somebody hurts you, I’m gonna get hurt too _

_ That’s just how we work, yeah that’s just how we work _

Luke looked over at Julie during this line, and she returned his gaze. He knew damn well that this song was about her best friend, but he couldn’t help but resonate with that verse. They’d only known each other for a short time, but he couldn’t help but feel protective over her. When Julie sent that text to him, he dropped what he was doing and hustled the guys out of Reggie’s house.

He briefly explained her text, but there was no context behind it. He had taken off into a sprint, causing Alex and Reggie to complain behind him. If she needed him, he’d be there as quickly as he could. He wasn’t about to let her down.

_ My life, my life would be real low, zero _

_ Flying solo _

_ My life, my life would be real low, zero _

_ Flying solo without you _

The song dwindled down and the girls were face to face with each other. Julie sang the last notes of the song as she rested her forehead on Flynn’s. The song said everything she couldn’t, and they both knew it. The two hugged and giggled, happy to have repaired things. They separated and sat on the couch as Julie explained more of the situation in depth.

Luke chimed in a few times when his side of the story was needed, including somewhat breaking into the shed and crashing here. Flynn understood his home situation and nodded.

“I get it, why you couldn’t tell me. You were just trying to protect your friend.” Flynn summed up.

His heart swelled. He’d never thought about it like that, her protecting  _ him _ . That blush returned to him as he rubbed the back of his neck, attempting to cover it. Thankfully, no one was looking at him.

“You guys all seem pretty cool,” Flynn started. She whipped around and looked at Luke. “But no funny business. If you’re crashing here, I’m watching you like a hawk.”

She looked at him with piercing eyes and pointed a finger at him. He put his hands up to symbolize his innocence. Alex and Reggie laughed at their friend’s scared reaction as Julie jokingly shoved Flynn. Everything was back to the way it should be.


	10. That's Just How We Work

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys are reminded of a last-minute class grade that they haven't done and Julie gets a surprise in her dance class.

Luke and Reggie made their way to the music classroom bright and early that morning. When they finally arrived, they both saw Alex had saved their spots- sorta. He was laid back in a chair, asleep. Luke approached him first and nudged his leg with his shoe.

“Alex.  _ Alex _ . Dude, wake up.”

The slight movement of the plastic school chair he was in startled him, awakening him from his slumber. A surprised noise came out of his mouth as he looked around and finally acknowledged his two friends.

“What- oh. Hey guys.” He grumbled, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

Luke and Reggie took their seats next to him before returning their attention to Alex.

“Are you ok, man? What are you snoozing at school for?” Reggie asked.

Alex shrugged as he tried to make himself look a little less dishevelled. 

“I left home a little earlier this morning to avoid, uh, conflict.” He admitted, not making eye contact with either of them.

They both knew what that meant. Long story short, Alex’s dad had yet to remove the 10-foot rod from his ass and proceeded to be a dickwad.

“What time did you leave your house, dude?” Luke asked.

“Um, 4:30?” Alex squeaked.

Both of their jaws dropped. That was  _ early _ . And coming from Luke, who used to get up at the crack of dawn to watch the sun rise, because he felt it gave him more musical inspiration, that was clearly saying something.

“Alex, we gotta get you some caffeine or something. You’re gonna be crashing all day at this rate.”

The blond waved his hand, dismissing the two of them as he struggled to keep his eyes open.

“Way ahead of you. I texted Julie when I left, asking her to bring me  _ anything _ . It could be liquid meth for all I care.”

“Bro, when did you get Julie’s number?” Reggie asked.

“I got it from Luke’s phone while he was unconscious on your couch the other day.”

Reggie chuckled as his friend sighed. As if on cue, Julie walked in side-by-side with Flynn, coffees in hand. Alex immediately perked up at the sight of her and the caffeinated beverages. She approached the group, greeting them and throwing in a ‘good morning’ here and there. She handed Alex his coffee and he cradled it like it was made of gold.

“You’re an angel, Julie. Oh my god, I owe you my life.” 

The previously-mentioned girl giggled at his dramatic response.

“Only if your soul is worth $2.63 plus tip, but seriously, it’s on me.”

Luke hadn’t taken his eyes off of Julie since the moment she walked into the room. She looked at him briefly and smiled, causing his heart to flutter. She and Flynn took their seats on the other side of the room, causing him to frown a little. He was hoping that she’d sit over here with him. Hell, both of them could, he didn’t mind.

Class began shortly after his pouting did. The teacher made the same usual announcements and class droned on, including a few more last performances.  _ Shit.  _ They still hadn’t done theirs yet, but it appears they weren’t the only ones. Luke turned to Alex and Reggie.

“Think we could convince her to use our gig with Julie as our performance grade?” 

He was met with unamused stares and shaking heads. He sighed.    
  


“I can sign us up for sometime this week? May as well get it over and done with.” Alex suggested. 

The other two nodded. Alex heaved himself from his chair once Mrs. Harrison left them to their own devices and approached her desk, signing Sunset Curve up for a class performance. Luke didn’t really like referring to their class grades as Sunset Curve shows. They worked  _ hard _ for what they’ve accomplished and rock bands don’t just  _ play _ when they’re told to. Luke strongly believed in playing when it  _ feels  _ right. His blond friend returned to them after a brief discussion with their teacher.

“Alright, we’re on for Wednesday. The other two groups are going tomorrow, so we’ll be the last ones.” He confirmed.

Luke clapped a hand on each of his friend’s shoulders as a goofy grin found its way to his features.

“Well, boys, they always save the best for last, don’t they?”

The class continued on without any more excitement, causing Luke to drift off into his own thoughts. He wrestled with a few lyric ideas he had, jumped to the topic of what he was going to eat for lunch today, and  _ her. _

Julie.

She’d been crossing his mind more often than not these days, and he was hellbent on keeping that tidbit of information to himself. He’d never hear the end of it from Alex and Reggie. Luke figured it was normal, though. She was kind of a new presence in his life, so her popping up in his thoughts periodically was ok, right? It’s not like he was forming a small crush on her or anything. He’d be the first to admit that she’s very pretty and incredibly talented, though. On top of the fact that she had these deep brown eyes that anyone could nearly sink into and a laugh that could cure illnesses, Luke could easily admit that any guy would be lucky to have Julie.

That thought put a weird feeling in his gut. He didn’t like the idea of any guy having Julie.  _ Still definitely not crushing, though. Nope, no way. _

He chose to ignore the way his heart fluttered any time she would look over at him mid-conversation with Flynn.

Damnit.

Maybe there was a small something. Not even an entire something, but like, half a something.

\---

Julie was at her locker gathering the rest of her things for the school day when a figure in her peripheral vision startled her. She jumped and nearly slammed her hand in the metal door. After regaining her composure, she turned to the culprit.

“Hey, Jules.” Luke spoke.

She sighed and gave him a less-than-pleased look. She continued organizing her things.

“Sure, scare the hell out of me, why don’t you?” She spat.

She was mostly joking, he knew that. That award-winning smile spread across his face as he ducked, trying to get her attention.

“Come on, it was kind of funny.” No response. “A little funny?”

Nothing.

He sighed, giving up. He leaned on the locker next to her and pouted.

“Alright, I’m sorry for spooking you. Can you find it in your heart to forgive me?” He begged.

When she turned to look at him, he was over-exaggerating his pouty look by widening his eyes and sticking his bottom lip out. She couldn’t contain her laughter as a smile broke out across her own face.

“Quit it with the puppy dog eyes, I can’t with you!” She exclaimed, swatting him with a notebook.

They both burst out into laughter at the goofy situation. As they were giggling to each other, a boy with blond hair and a letterman jacket walked by, turning slightly to look at Julie. The kid kind of looked familiar, but he couldn’t place it. He offered a nod and a small smile in her direction, which she awkwardly returned. Luke quickly looked between the two, a puzzled look on his face.

“Who was that?” He asked innocently, feeling a little bit of jealousy start to make a home in his chest.

Julie found an excuse to look at the floor before answering him.

“Oh, uh. T-that’s just Nick. He’s in the music program, too. Maybe you’d know that if you paid attention during class.” She teased, trying to cover up a small stutter in her answer.

It took a moment to process before it clicked.  _ The other guitar kid _ .  _ What’s he doing waving at Julie? _ Luke didn’t even know they were friends.

“Oh, mediocre-guitar-guy. I kinda remember him.” Luke casually responded.

No way in hell was he about to let Julie get any hint of him being jealous of some mop-headed pretty boy. His comment earned a punch to the shoulder.

“Be nice! I don’t think his guitar playing is half bad.” She retorted, following his figure down the hall with her eyes.

“Right, but I’m definitely better,” Luke scoffed.

Julie was going to make a comment about how Luke could put the ruler away, and quit trying to compare himself to anyone else that happened to lay their eyes on a guitar, but they were interrupted by the warning bell. They’d have to get going to their classes if they didn’t want to be late.

“Ugh, I don’t wanna go to my next class. It’s literally the worst.” Luke whined.

“What is it? Surely, it can’t be that bad.” She asked.

It was probably something like Trigonometry or something. Julie hated math classes. Well, most math classes. Anything past Algebra was too damn complicated for her.

“Weight training. I hate it so much, it’s just a bunch of sweaty meathead dudes talking about how  _ masculine _ they are. Shoot me now.”

Luke dragged his fingers across his face as he complained. Julie’s eyebrows shot up. She didn’t know he was in weight training, but honestly that would explain his muscle mass in comparison to Alex and Reggie. She quickly snapped out of her thoughts, now was not the time to daydream about Luke’s arms- not that she ever did that. Absolutely not.

“Well, it’ll be over before you know it, right?” She offered.

He shrugged and sighed, letting out a groan as he started to walk away.

“Yeah, I guess. Catch you later, Jules.”

She waved as Luke headed off towards his class, deciding to follow in his footsteps and head to her own. She approached the studio classroom and made her way to the locker rooms inside, where she’d begin changing into her workout clothes. As she stepped through the doorway, a snobby blonde stepped towards her, blocking her path. She sighed.

“Did you need something, Carrie?” She asked, not actually caring what the girl wanted.

Carrie snickered with her girls before answering.

“Not really, I just hope you’re ready to enjoy class today.”

She stuck her nose up at Julie and signalled her posse to follow her out of the room, leaving the curly-haired girl puzzled.  _ What the hell was that about?  _ She shook her head, assuming that Carrie was just becoming more and more delusional. Flynn arrived shortly after, allowing Julie to relay what had happened with the blonde-haired bully.

“I just don’t get that girl. She could literally find so many better things to do with her time, like learning how to properly contour. That foundation she wears just isn’t cutting it.” Flynn insulted.

Julie giggled. She was glad everything was back to normal with her best friend, so it was them against the world again. The two girls left the locker room and took their places in the dance studio, doing their morning stretches. Their dance instructor’s voice broke through the chit-chat of the dance studio.

“Right on time, Coach Barron.”

Julie and Flynn stopped their stretches and looked up. A bunch of boys in athletic tank tops and shorts walked in, crowding on one side of the room. They looked just as awkward as the girls felt. The best part about dance class was that it was  _ girls only _ , so they didn’t have to deal with the annoying bullshit that guys try to pull in every other physical education-oriented class.

“So students, Coach Barron and I have decided that his weight training class will be joining us for the next few weeks. Many pro-athletes have used dance to help them with coordination and mobility.” 

Julie’s jaw dropped. As she eyeballed the group of guys, her stomach dropped when her gaze fell onto a familiar face.

Luke.

They seemed to make eye contact at the same time, a smile lighting up his features. She wasn’t quite sure what they were supposed to do with the guys in the class now, but she wouldn’t turn down an opportunity to spend more time with Luke. She had to admit she was nervous, though.This would be quite the vulnerable state for her. She looked to Flynn for confidence.

“Well, this ought to be interesting.” She said, crossing her arms.

“This isn’t about flirting with girls,” Coach Barron barked. A few of the guys snickered. “This is about making you all better.”

There was an awkward silence after he spoke, most of the boys kept their eyes on the floor. The silence was broken by the dance instructor.

“Alright everybody, pair up!”

A guy whose name she didn’t know approached Flynn, grabbing her hands and pulling her away. Julie hopelessly reached for her friend, not wanting to be left alone. She turned back to Luke’s direction to see him walking towards her, only for his path to be blocked by a pink-clad blonde. She placed her hands on his biceps and pulled him towards the other side of the studio, looking over her shoulder to shoot Julie a smirk. Little had she known, Carrie knew the weight training class would be joining their dance class for a while. She’d been waiting and hunting for her prey like some sort of wild animal, and the second she was given the go-ahead, she beelined for Luke. He gave her a pleading look as she pulled him away, but her focus on him was interrupted. 

“Hey.” An awkward voice spoke.

Julie turned towards the direction it had come from. Standing before her was Nick. She was startled. She wasn’t sure why Nick was over here with her when he should’ve been with the girl who stole  _ her  _ partner.

“Hey, you.” She replied, hesitantly.” 

The awkward greetings were interrupted, thankfully, by her instructor.

“So, ladies, let’s do what we learned last week and we will perform this with the boys this Friday.”

She proceeded to explain and guide the students into the dance moves they’d be doing, instructing the girls to stand in front of their partners. Julie and Nick slowly repeated what she did, twisting and turning their bodies to mimic the dance moves. As she instructed them to spin around, Julie caught Flynn’s eye. She made a panicked expression that screamed  _ ‘help me!’.  _ Flynn smiled back at her and waved her panic off. She internally groaned.

As they finished the first part of the practice dance, the instructor informed them they’d be doing it one more time without music. Julie turned to Nick, giving him a concerned glance. He wasn’t the most graceful dance partner.

“You ready for this?” She asked.

He paused, something had stopped him from answering at first. She followed his line of sight, only to see Carrie quickly turning away and coincidentally focusing all of her attention on Luke. Julie felt the jealousy rise in her, and decided to blame it on the fact that she didn’t like seeing that  _ bitch _ getting too cozy with her friend. Granted, he looked uncomfortable, but so did every other boy in the class.

“Sure, uh… my little sister throws a  _ lot  _ of princess dance parties.”

His answer seemed a little half-assed and a little distracted. She didn’t even know he had a little sister, and they’ve gone to school together since elementary school. She also may have had a small to decent sized crush on him throughout the entirety of middle school, making this more awkward. Julie was convinced that he, along with the entire school, knew. The students were instructed to begin, and the pair continued to weave around each other.

“Not so bad, Your Majesty.” Julie joked.

This earned a chuckle out of Nick as they continued to dance. A small smile crept onto his face as he thanked her.

“So, about the other day, in the music classroom…” he started.

Damn. He was talking about the fact that she couldn’t find it in herself to play in front of the class. Everyone saw her run out of the classroom, it was no secret. She was surprised no one had made fun of her for it yet.

“Yeah… I was kind of hoping if I didn’t talk about it, I could pretend it never happened.” 

This part of the dance called for Nick to be right behind Julie, offering his hands for her to take, which she did. They glided- well, as gracefully as they both could-, and he spun her around to face him.

“You’ll be fine, OK? You’re tough. You’ve been through way worse.” 

He almost regretted it the second it came out of his mouth. His response startled Julie and she lost her composure, falling right into his chest. He caught her and wrapped his arms around her waist before he could think about what he was doing. Her face heated up from embarrassment and the close proximity of the two of them. She let out a gasp and backed away.

“Sorry, I- um…” Nick tried to stutter his way through an apology.

“Doing good, class! Breathe. Once more, and this time, with music.”

The dance studio was filled with the sound of late 90s R&B as everyone returned to the beginning stages of the dance.

“It’s just- I’m not used to dancing like this.”

That may have been true, but it still sounded like some made up bullshit if Julie had ever heard any. A confused look covered her face.

“What, you and Carrie never danced together?” She asked, huffing out a small laugh.

“Nope, and we never will,” he answered, immediately dropping his composure. “We broke up.”

Julie was stunned for a moment. She never thought she’d see the day where the most popular couple in school  _ broke up _ . She looked over her shoulder in Carrie’s general direction to see her gazing at Nick. The second she saw the other girl looking at her, she immediately went back to being all over Luke.

_ So that’s what she’s up to? _

Was she trying to hurt Julie by taking Luke’s attention away from her? She liked to think that her friend was smarter than to give Carrie an ounce of his attention, which was true. Carrie had made a comment towards him about how often she found him looking in Julie’s direction. She must have said something to him again, based on the clearly irritated expression on Luke’s face. Nick went on to explain how he was done with the drama that his now ex-girlfriend was constantly involved in.

“I don’t know if you noticed, but she’s not exactly the nicest person.” He said.

Julie gave him a look that read  _ ‘are you kidding me?’ _ . Of course she knew this. Every girl in the school knew this. Carrie insulted any girl that could possibly be perceived as a threat.

“What? I  _ never _ noticed,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

As the two conversed, they stretched apart from each other but were still joined by their hands. This feeling of  _ something _ began to bubble in Luke’s chest as he watched them dance, voiding all attention to his partner. He hardly knew who this chick was in front of him, but she seemed very hellbent on dancing with him. It shocked him, if he was being honest, so he didn’t really have much time to deny her. His sight was never too focused on Carrie though, he was always looking over at Julie.

He was practically itching to be near her right now. As time went on, he was slowly having to admit to himself that maybe, just  _ maybe _ , he did like her. He’d definitely keep that to himself, especially from Flynn. That girl practically has a radar in her brain. It almost scared him sometimes.

  
  


They continued the steps they learned for the dance. Nick spun Julie around, and then he jumped out- or tried to, at least. He ended up falling and landing on his ass. He stayed on the floor for a moment and looked around, embarrassed by his fall. Thankfully, no one was really paying attention to him in particular. He looked up at Julie.

“Are you sure you want me to be your dance partner?” He asked.

She gave an awkward chuckle and reached a hand out to him, offering him help to get up.

_ It’s not like you really gave me much of a choice _ , she thought.

“No, I want you.” She said confidently.

He gave her a questionable look and she could’ve sworn a pink color made its way to his cheeks. She quickly reevaluated her statement and nearly choked out the rest of the sentence.

“-to be my dance partner! We’ll get it eventually. Let’s just keep trying.”

That was a half-assed excuse if she’d ever heard one, but he seemed to buy it and it got them off of the topic of her less-than mediocre socializing skills. The class continued without any more awkward hiccups for the most part, minus Carrie continuing to send glares her way. Finally, the bell rang. The girls filed back into the locker room to change out of the dance clothes and go on to their next classes. While changing, Julie was whisper-yelling to Flynn.

“Did you see how Carrie hauled ass as soon as she saw Luke? What the hell was that about?”

Flynn shot her an unsurprised look as she put her arms through her sweater and pulled it over her head.

“I’m not shocked. The boy is grade A eye candy  _ and  _ he can play the guitar. I heard rumors from the other girls in class that Nick broke up with her, so she’s probably trying to replace him as soon as possible. What a heartless wench.” 

“Well, she’s gonna have to rebound with some other dude, Luke is off limits,” She said, crossing her arms.

She swore she could almost feel steam coming out of her ears.

“Ooh, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say that our very own Julie Molina is feeling some  _ jealousy _ .” Flynn teased.

Julie was at a loss for words for a moment, opening and closing her mouth like a fish out of water. She didn’t like what her best friend was hinting at. She slipped her t-shirt on and tightened her belt, trying to explain herself.

“That’s not what I meant! I just mean that- y’know, Luke is my friend. The last thing I want is for  _ Carrie _ to be around him.”

Julie’s answer seemed like an excuse to Flynn, but it was enough to keep her quiet for now. She responded with a suspicious hum as they slung their book bags over their shoulders and exited the locker rooms. As they left, Julie noticed a familiar figure fidgeting by the door of the dance studio. He approached the two girls and immediately started suffering from a case of word vomit.

“Julie, I don’t know what happened back there but that girl just popped out of nowhere and dragged me over to her and her friends. And then she-” 

She cut off his babbling and chuckled.

“Luke, it’s fine. I don’t think she poisoned you or anything.”

  
It was a half-assed answer and she knew it. She seemed to be full of those today. What she  _ really _ wanted to say was how irritated she was that they didn’t get to be partners for the next few weeks. She hoped she could figure out a way to swap partners in the near future. She spent the rest of the day aimlessly daydreaming about dancing with Luke.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaaaa another chapter!! Thank you guys for reading, all your lovely comments make me smile :) I've cross-posted up to chapter 9 on wattpad, if you care to read it there instead. I really don't like the layout of it tho ;-;


	11. Now or Never

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys are finally ready to perform in front of their class, and the gang goes out to celebrate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! So I’m not dead, but I certainly fell off the face of the earth for a bit, so that was fun. Life has been a little hectic for me, I’ve been apartment hunting with my boyfriend and stressing over work, but I hope this long chapter makes up for it! Enjoy! 
> 
> (Also: keep an eye out for one shots from me 👀)

Tuesday came and went without hardly anyone noticing, and Wednesday was finally here. Today was the day that the guys would be performing for their class for a grade. None of them were necessarily nervous, Luke was incredibly confident that they were going to kill it. He was just concerned about what someone might think. He was concerned about what  _ Julie _ might think.

Sure, they’d performed together so that she could get back into the music program, but this was different. They’d be performing as full-blown Sunset Curve this time. This would be the first time she’d see  _ them _ , the first time she’d really see  _ him  _ in his element.

Luke, Alex and Reggie all sat down the day before to discuss which song they were going to play. Alex suggested “Now or Never” because of its heavy guitar and ability to get the energy in the room amped up and Reggie suggested “Home Is Where My Horse Is”. This earned an unamused sigh from Alex and a smack upside the head from Luke.

“That’s not even an official Sunset Curve song, shit-for-brains.” Luke criticized.

Reggie pouted for a moment before eventually coming to terms with it. The song Luke suggested, however, was of course “My Name Is Luke”. The guys all liked the song, otherwise they wouldn’t have agreed to writing it and deeming it an official Sunset Curve song, but something about it wasn’t really fitting the classroom appeal. It was an incredibly personal song with lyrics explaining Luke’s life and home situation. He felt that his parents never really  _ saw _ him for who he was and what he could do, but as what they wanted him to do with his life. Part of him wanted to play the personal song to show a different side of himself to Julie, but that probably wouldn’t be a good idea for an actual audience, especially one he has to see every day in class.

The band walked into the music classroom to see the chairs lined up the way they always were for performance days. The guys had brought their instruments to school, minus Alex for obvious reasons, having arrived earlier than they needed to. Luke’s electric guitar- which he thought was  _ much _ prettier than that other guitar kids’ was- was propped up on its stand, just waiting to roar to life. Reggie’s bass lay in a case towards the front of the room. He didn’t trust anyone around his precious instrument, unlike Luke who encouraged people to ogle and stare. 

“Alright boys, last show for the semester. You ready?” Mrs. Harrison asked, clapping her hands together once as a way to get the classroom’s attention.

The guys gave their affirmations and made their way to the front of the room. As soon as Luke got to his guitar, he slung it around his body and hooked up his equipment. Once he was ready, his eyes began to search the crowd. He immediately locked eyes with Julie. A smile grew on her face as their gazes met and he could’ve swore he saw her cheeks turn pink. He gave her a small nod of acknowledgement, small enough that no one noticed. Any time he was about to perform, this on-stage persona came to life, and he was practically banging on Luke’s ribcage. He felt more confident and, dare he say, a little cocky. He sent a wink Julie’s way and turned to face the guys, checking to see if everyone was ready.

Julie’s heart nearly soared out of her chest. She could tell her face was as red as a cherry as she tried to play it off, not wanting to deal with Flynn’s response. She knew her best friend saw it. There was no way she was getting out of this one, judging by the coy smile she was receiving from the girl next to her.

Luke confirmed that he and the guys were ready and took his place in the middle of what he imagined to be the stage. He looked out into the crowd again and spoke.

“Hey, we’re Sunset Curve and this one’s called ‘Now or Never’, hope you like it.”

With that, Alex tapped his drumsticks together and kicked off the song. Luke let the energy from their instruments jolt through his body and course through his veins. This is what he loved doing.

_ Take off, last stop _

_ Count down ‘til we blast open the top _

_ Fast first, full charge _

_ Electric hammer to the heart _

As soon as they started playing, it was like they were a well oiled machine. Their unique, raw sound grabbed everyone’s attention, even the snobby brat in pink. 

_ Clocks move forward  _

_ But we don’t get older, no _

_ Kept on climbing _

_ ‘Til our stars collided _

As he sang that line, he looked over at Julie once again. He felt that it was music that brought them together. Music was something that she shared with her mom, but after her passing, she wasn’t sure if she ever wanted anything to do with it again, until she met  _ him _ . He felt that music was and always has been his lifeline. He wouldn’t be Luke without it.

He was thankful that his brain remembered the song like muscle memory, because he found himself thinking about the day they first met. The day they first  _ really _ met. When he ran after her into the hallway, he had no idea his life would change this much from hardly knowing a person. Now, the idea of not having her around physically pained him.

_ And all the times we fell behind _

_ Were just the keys to paradise _

Julie was looking at her new friends in awe. She knew they were talented, as seen in their performance that got her back into the music program, but this was  _ different _ . Reggie’s powerhouse sound on the bass practically vibrated throughout the entire school as he jammed with the rest of the band. Alex kept the guys on track with rhythmic beats from his drum, keeping his eyes glued to his instrument. He was passionate about what he could do, and he had every right to be. 

And  _ Luke _ .

The shaggy-haired singer gave off this energy that was nearly addictive. Julie found herself watching his every move as he strutted across the makeshift stage, jumping around and shredding on his guitar. From time to time, he would look up and find her eyes, almost as if he was singing only to her. She would later find herself dreaming of a moment like that.

_ Don’t look down _

_ Cause we’re still rising  _

_ Up right now _

The boys had so much to look forward to in their lives and in their music careers. Hell, they were only in high school. By the time they graduate, they’ll probably have a huge following on social media. That’s what they all liked to hope for, anyways. The Red Hot Chili Peppers formed when  _ they  _ were in high school and they’re a household name! Luke figured him and his boys could accomplish the same thing.

_ And even if we hit the ground _

_ We’ll still fly _

_ Keep dreaming like we’ll live forever _

_ But live it like its now or never _

They continued their song, pumping up the class audience. Their sound was upbeat and infectious, causing everyone in the room to be nodding their heads to the beat or doing some sort of dance in their seats. 

The song eventually ended as Luke struck the final chord. The classroom erupted in applause and Julie cheered, earning another side-eyed look from her best friend. Luke’s eyes met hers again as a contagious smile found his features and quickly spread to hers. The class clapped and cheered as the band’s performance ended. Julie jumped up and let out a cheer of her own, but quickly sat back down after realizing she was the only one out of her seat. Her face turned red, which Luke thought was adorable, as she sunk down lower into her plastic chair.

“Well, that was quite the show, boys,” Mrs. Harrison congratulated as she made her way towards the front of the classroom.

She dismissed Sunset Curve from the ‘stage’ after adding on another “good job”. She then told the students the rest of the class period was free to do what they wanted, whether it be chit-chatting or working on something for another class, as long as they didn’t get too rowdy. 

As the boys sat down, Luke clapped a hand on each of his friends’ backs. That award-winning smile was becoming a more frequent resident to his face these days.

“Not bad, guys. Not bad at all.”

“I say we go out and celebrate tonight. I’m thinking that awesome little burger shack near the beach?” Reggie suggested, looking back and forth between his bandmates for approval.

Before either of them could reply, two familiar girls approached the band.

“You guys, that was amazing! I really liked that song.” Julie gushed.

As Flynn stood next to her, she crossed her arms and made eye contact with each of the guys. Luke and Reggie paid her no mind, but Alex felt a little nervous under her intimidating stare until a small began to break out on her features.

“Honestly, you guys killed it.”

“Thanks! Hey, we were talking about going out and getting some celebratory grub tonight, do you guys wanna come with?” Reggie offered.

Luke turned to look at his over-excited bandmate with a look that nearly screamed  _ “dude, are you serious?” _ The boy with food on his mind simply looked back at him and shrugged. Ok, so maybe he didn’t quite get it. There has been some teasing about Luke having a thing for Julie, but nothing has ever been confirmed between the guys, so maybe he just didn’t think about it. As Luke’s eyes wandered to Alex, the knowing smirk on his friend’s face said that  _ he _ understood completely. Luke gave a swift kick to the drummer’s shin, earning a startled groan.

“Dude! What was that for?” 

Luke shrugged and feigned the most innocent look he could muster.

“Sorry, thought I saw a bug.”

It was taking every ounce of self-restraint that Luke didn’t even know he  _ had _ to keep from laughing. He bit the inside of his cheek to even keep himself from smiling as he diverted his attention back to the conversation in front of him. Julie and Flynn were seemingly having their own conversation as they discussed the newly mentioned plans. After a brief moment of murmuring to each other, they rejoined the group. Julie was the first to speak up.

“Alright, we’ll join you guys. Where are we going?”

Reggie and Alex took turns explaining to the girls where the burger shack was and how amazing the fries are. The girls sat down in empty chairs, hanging onto every word about the incredible food they would be celebrating with tonight. In the middle of the explanation, Julie found herself turning her head towards Luke, who was already looking back at her. He offered a small smile, which she returned before jumping back into the discussion of cheap burgers and fries. 

“Ok, but the important question still remains unanswered. Does this joint have milkshakes, and on a scale of one to ten, how bomb are they?” Flynn interrogated. 

This led to another diversion of topic as everyone went around stating their favorite milkshake flavor. Alex chose strawberry: classic, but simple. Reggie chose something along the lines of ‘this has enough chocolate to send me into a sugar coma half-way through.’ The boy did not need anything else to kindle the fire that was his goofy and hyper personality, but nobody was going to stop him. Flynn firmly planted her opinion of red velvet being the best, which makes sense for her. The flavor was similar to her, seeing that it was boujie but still very much a favorite. Luke opened his mouth to give his favorite flavor when Julie spoke at the same time as him.

“M&M, hands down.” 

They looked at each other in shock, both letting smiles cross their faces. Alright, he was not about to get in his head about a  _ milkshake flavor. _ So what? They have similar taste, great minds think alike, right? He’d like to see which edition of Cosmopolitan magazine broadcasted that having the same favorite milkshake means you’re destined to be soulmates. 

The rest of the group looked back and forth between the two before Reggie spoke up. 

“Honestly, I’m convinced that Luke has never tried another flavor, and that’s why that’s his favorite.” 

Julie leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. Luke still couldn’t take his eyes off of her. He learned that she would get this look on her face when she was about to say something witty, and it made him want to get lost in her mind. He wanted to know what she thought about in her free time, what she wants to do with her life, what thoughts keep her awake at night, and maybe if any of those included…  _ him? _

“Those are fighting words, Reginald. You don’t diss a classic flavor like that.” 

“Ooh, Reginald. We’re breaking out the full names, I see. This girl means business, boys. I’d be careful,” Luke said.

\---

The day went on and Luke’s head could hardly wrap around the idea of getting food with the girls tonight. He knew it wasn’t really anything to freak out about, but it was kind of like a date. Kind of. As the school day ended, his anxiety worsened. What if he messed this up and Julie thought he and his friends were weird as hell?

Which, of course, they  _ were _ weird as hell, but in an enjoyable way.

He finally met up with Alex and Reggie as the bell rang, ending the last period of the day. The halls flooded with students as they raced to get to their cars and pile onto the buses. The guys flattened themselves up against the lockers in order to avoid any damage from the stampede. Right off the bat, the boys knew something was up.

“Dude, what’s with you? You’ve been playing with your hair like some kind of crushing school girl.” Reggie pointed out.

As the halls cleared, the boys left their meet-up spot and started making their way to Alex’s car. It certainly wasn’t much, but as a small SUV, it was big enough to tote his drum kit around and the rest of the band.

“That’s because he  _ is  _ a crushing school girl.” Alex quipped.

“Ok, first of all, I’d like to set the record straight that I am very much a man, thank you very much. And secondly, I am  _ not _ crushing, so mind your business, would you?”

Alex put his hands up to his mouth, feigning an apologetic look.

“Oh, that’s right, you can’t keep your eyes off of Julie for a  _ different _ reason then. I was wondering what that was. Care to enlighten us?”

Reggie had pulled a water bottle out of his bag while the two feuded. Alex’s comment nearly made water shoot out of his mouth. After avoiding what could have been a mess, he choked out a laugh at his friend’s shocked face.

“Look, I don’t-,” Luke started. “You guys don’t even- you know what, shut the fuck up, would you?”

“Guilty as charged. You poor, poor thing.”

The brunette patted his friend on the back, which he promptly shoved off.

“Get off my case, guys. Julie and I are just friends, there’s no way in hell she wants anything more than that.”

Alex and Reggie shared a knowing look as Luke kept his head down, slightly embarrassed. 

“I mean… have you asked her how she feels?” Reggie asked.

Luke gave him an incredulous look.

“Yeah, sure, we’ve known each other for a few weeks now, but let me just ask her if she wants to run away together and live happily ever after.”

The boys spent the rest of the afternoon picking on Luke about his not-so-secret crush on Julie. They were acknowledging it so it was about damn time he did, too. The teasing continued until he threatened something about telling the whole school embarrassing stories about the two of them.

Finally, it was time to get ready and head over to the burger shack. Luke had been smart enough to leave a change of clothes at Alex’s place, otherwise he probably would’ve been at the Molina residence, creeping through bushes and trees to avoid being seen. Surely, if a teenage girl was going out with her friends, her father would be standing right at the front door to see her off. That was  _ definitely _ not how we wanted to meet Julie’s father.

That thought nearly stopped him in his tracks.  _ Would  _ he meet Julie’s dad, on any basis other than as her friend?

He tried to shake the thought out of his head, but something about  _ date _ ,  _ meeting the parents _ and _ first impressions _ wouldn’t get out of his mind. Had he had access to his entire closet, he may have found himself struggling over what to wear. He never doubted any of his fashion choices, but maybe he found himself wanting to put in a little extra effort lately. He changed out of the clothes he had been wearing all day and pulled on a basic outfit consisting of a faded band t-shirt, ripped jeans, and a beige hoodie.

“Alright, Romeo, you ready?” Alex called as he walked back into his room.

Luke rolled his eyes and returned his gaze back to the mirror, where he was running his hands through his hair about fifty thousand times, trying to make sure it looked decent.

“Bite me, would you?” Luke quipped.

“You look fine, dude. Let’s just go, we gotta go pick up Reggie still.”

He agreed and they left the house, heading towards the missing band member’s house. When they arrived, they saw their friend perched on his front doorstep with his head in his hands. He got up upon hearing the sound of an approaching car and made his way over to Luke and Alex. The blonde boy immediately began interrogating as Reggie opened the car door.

“Reggie, are you alright? What happened?”

“My parents happened. Honestly, I don’t really wanna talk about it. I just wanna drown my sorrows in milkshakes and burgers.”

The rest of the car ride was pretty quiet except for the soft sound of Luke humming to whatever song was playing on the radio. The band pulled up to the burger shack they’d all been drooling over and parked, seeing Julie and Flynn sitting on a bench outside. Luke was the first one out of the car and he found himself bee-lining to the girls. Well, he was mostly focusing on Julie. She was wearing a sparkly blouse that shimmered every time she moved. He was painfully trying to ignore the little voice in his head that mentioned it matching the twinkle in her eyes. She had on a distressed denim jacket as well as a pair of black skinny jeans. On any other girl, it was just an outfit. On  _ Julie _ , though, she looked like a model.

She got up as soon as she spotted Luke and met him about half-way. Their smiles matched as they were both speechless in an attempt to greet each other. 

“H-hey.” He practically whispered.

“Hi.”

Before the situation became obvious to either of them, Flynn approached her best friend’s side and slung an arm around her shoulder as the other two boys joined them.

“It’s about time you guys got here. Don’t you know it’s impolite to keep two ladies waiting for this long?” Flynn jabbed.

Reggie got down on one knee and bowed before the feisty girl, begging for forgiveness.

“Forgive us, your Majesty. We know not the severity of our actions and it won’t happen again. If there’s anything we could do to prove our worthiness?” He offered, a coy smile on his lips.

“I like this one,” Flynn said, stage-whispering in Julie’s ear. “Escort me to the burgers, good sir. I’m craving greasy food.”

With that, he jumped up and nearly ran to the door of the establishment, opening it for Flynn and guiding her inside. The group followed their lead and seated themselves at a round booth, cramming into the seats side by side. They sat in order from Alex, Reggie, Luke, Julie and Flynn on the end. Luke laughed to himself as he noticed the two most responsible people of the group sitting at the ends, and most likely going to be the ones to interact with the waitress. 

As they all got situated and comfortable, Julie noticed a tapping on her leg. She focused her attention on it and realized that Luke was knocking knees with her under the table. She fought to hide the smile that desperately wanted to break out across her face as the gang chattered. Shortly after, a waitress showed up, introducing herself and handing out menus. She was showing a fake customer service smile, but that quickly turned into a real one as she laid her eyes on Luke. Julie felt a weird feeling rude up in her as the waitress’ glance lingered a bit too long for your liking. 

“I’ll give you guys some time to look over the menu. Let me know if you have any questions, or if you… need anything.” 

She could’ve sworn she saw a wink come from the petite blonde, but maybe she was imaging it. She looked over at Luke, who didn’t seem to pay the interaction any mind. Her eyes then wandered to Flynn, who definitely saw the whole thing. She gave Julie a look that she wasn’t quite able to translate, but it was surely along the lines of  _ ‘this bitch’ _ .

Everyone began discussing the amount of greasy burgers and fries that they would be consuming and Julie was willing her best friend to look at her phone. She hoped that her intense staring conveyed her message. 

_ We have a slight problem.  _

Flynn made a face at her phone, unsure of the problem that Julie was referring to. 

_ What’s wrong?  _

She was thankful that her friend was able to maintain a calm face and still be part of the group’s conversations.

_ I forgot my wallet at home.  _

Flynn nearly stifled a laugh as she responded. She felt a little silly for texting her friend when they were literally seated right next to each other. 

_ I’ll cover you, don’t worry about it. Just pay me back another day or something.  _

Julie sent a small nod her way as a thank you. Her family was kind of struggling financially, and she was slightly embarrassed about anyone else knowing. She felt a little guilty about having her friend pay for her food, but ultimately she was thankful. 

“Say what you want, but the fried onion burger slaps like no other.” Reggie nearly cheered.

Alex put his hands up in defense.

“I’m not saying it’s bad, I respect your choice. I’m just saying I prefer the mushroom burger.”

The two bickered for a moment while everyone got their orders together just in time for the waitress to come back. She wrote down everyone’s burger and milkshake orders and spent a little extra time making sure she got every perfect detail of Luke’s order now. This time, the guys seemed to notice the waitress’s interest in Luke, except for the boy of interest himself. 

“Does anyone else think that waitress is acting a little…” Alex started.

“Weird? Flirty? Yes, one hundred percent.” Reggie finished. 

A bewildered look appeared on Luke’s face. What in the world were they talking about? Granted, he was paying attention to the curly headed girl next to him, not necessarily the blonde waitress.

“Maybe she’s just being friendly so she can get a good tip.” He suggested. 

“Yeah, maybe she wants a  _ good _ ti-“ 

Before the crude statement could come out of Alex’s mouth, Reggie stomped on his foot in an attempt to silence him. He plastered a fake smile on his face as his blonde friend groaned in pain. Julie held back her snickering as Luke was about as lost to this conversation as last year’s Easter egg. 

The group’s conversations bounced between music, classes, people they didn’t like, and about 46 other topics before always going back to music. Everyone of course had other interests, but they all knew it was something everyone at the table loved. 

“So, Julie, when are you going to write your next big hit single featuring Sunset Curve?” Flynn asked, leaning her arm on the table. 

She knew exactly what her friend was getting at. Julie had mentioned wanting to perform with the guys again because there was just something so  _ surreal _ about it. She truly believed that their sounds belonged together, but she was slightly embarrassed about asking them to work together on a song again. She was so grateful for what they did to help her get back into the music program, but she was afraid that they wouldn’t really want to do things like that anymore. Maybe it was just a one time thing. 

“Yeah, Jules. When are we going to write a song together?” 

Luke turned and looked at her as he asked this. He searched her eyes for any hint at the answer she was about to give. The way he asked made it seem like he just wanted the two of them to work on a song, not the rest of the band. That thought left her mind as soon as it entered. Why wouldn’t he want the rest of the band to pitch in? Of course it would be all of them working on a song. 

“Well,” she started. “I wasn’t really  _ planning  _ on anything yet because I figure you guys have your own thing going on, but I do have some ideas back at the studio.” 

She shrugged sheepishly at her answer and hoped that it would suffice for now. The smile on Luke’s face was good enough for her as he seemed satisfied with her response. 

“We will definitely have to go over those ideas, then.” 

She returned his smile and nearly forgot about the rest of the band sitting around them. She quickly looked to each of them, offering a smile and nodding. 

Shortly after, their food and milkshakes arrived. Everyone dug in, stuffing themselves with fries and burgers. Halfway through the less-than-luxury meal, Flynn’s phone was going off like crazy. She got a very alarmed look on her face as she read the screen. 

“Oh, shit. You guys, I gotta run. My dad has been out of town for a few weeks, and he’s on his way home like  _ now. _ He wasn’t supposed to be back for another few days and the house is trashed!”

Flynn wiped her mouth with a paper napkin and began frantically scooting out of the booth to get up and go pay at the counter. She briefly said her goodbyes and left like a bat out of hell. Julie instantly felt anxious as her friend left. 

_ She was supposed to cover her bill. _

“Flynn, wait-,” Julie stuttered, but her friend had already flown out the door. 

Luke put a comforting hand on her knee. 

“Hey, no worries, Jules. You can hitch a ride in the Mercer-mobile, right Alex?” Luke offered.

He nodded and muttered something along the lines of  _ “sure, no problem,” _ but his words were muffled by the amount of French fries in his mouth. 

Julie appreciated the sentiment, but that wasn’t at all the problem, and Luke could sense it. Her anxiety could take down an elephant at this point. He pulled out his phone and shot a text to Alex, asking him to be slick and pull himself and Reggie away from the table for a moment. Alex looked down at his phone that was sitting on the seat next to him and subtly nodded. He gave an excuse about having a gift card to this place, and wanting to finish it up already. He offered the remaining balance of the gift card to Reggie, so they both scooted out of the booth, leaving Julie and Luke by themselves. 

“Hey, you okay over there?” He nearly whispered. 

Julie just shrugged. She was embarrassed about her situation and she certainly didn’t want to guilt trip  _ Luke,  _ of all people, to get involved. He prodded her to explain. 

“I kind of… asked Flynn if she could cover my bill here. At home… we’re kind of going through some things right now, but I still wanted to come out with you guys.” 

His heart dropped into his stomach. He knew what it was like to be in a home that wasn’t entirely financially stable. When he was a kid, his dad had gotten laid off a handful of times. They survived on food stamps for a while until his dad got a better paying job. He was about to reply and offer to help, but as he opened his mouth, the other two boys came back to the table. Luke figured she might not want the guys involved yet, and immediately changed the subject. 

“So, how was your trip?”

“Oh, it was lovely! We got you guys souvenirs and everything. The weather was  _ perfect. _ ” Alex retorted, playing along with the stupid joke. 

“Yeah it was just  _ perfect _ .” Reggie sneered.

He crossed his arms and sunk into his seat, pouting.

“Geez, Reg, who pissed in your cornflakes this morning?” Luke asked.

The group wasn’t used to Reggie being in a sour mood. It was like an eclipse. It was possible, but it was a complete phenomenon when it happened. Reggie let out another huff before he answered. 

“There was only fifty cents left on Alex’s gift card so I basically had to pay full price.” 

The table busted out in laughter at their friend’s dilemma. It was something so small and so inconvenient that it was just enough to get on Reggie’s nerves. Eventually, he cheered up and the boys were fixing to leave. 

“I’m gonna go pay. Jules, you coming?” 

She looked up at the sound of her name. Luke was standing next to the booth and offering a hand to her to help her out of the rounded seating. She forced a smile.

“That’s ok, you guys go ahead. I’ll be up there in a second.” 

Luke hesitated for a moment but nodded anyways. He urged the guys to follow him up front as he headed towards the register . Alex and Reggie decided they didn’t want to wait on him, so they headed outside to go do who knows what. Luke approached the register and saw the same waitress they had. The second she saw him, her expression changed to a flirty one. 

“How can I help you, handsome?” She said, batting her eyelashes.

“Hi, I uh-, I just needed to pay for the last two meals from our table.” 

He cleared his throat, slightly uncomfortable by the waitress’s compliment. It was unexpected on his end for sure. He made sure to keep his voice down so Julie couldn’t hear him. The waitress briefly glanced over at the table where Julie sat and then back to him. She sighed and instructed him to insert his debit card and PIN number into the machine. A receipt printed and she quickly grabbed it and scribbled something on it. She folded it up and handed it back to him, wrapping the receipt around his card. He gave a curt nod and stepped away. He looked over at Julie again to see her leaving the booth and heading his way. He took that as his cue to walk out of the restaurant to join Alex and Reggie, a smile lingering on his face. 

Julie stepped up to the counter. The waitress turned to her and nearly stuck her nose up at her. 

“What can I do for you?” 

Her tone of voice made the question seem more like an irritated statement.  _ Rude. _

“Oh, I just needed to pay my tab, but I’m-“ 

As she started to speak, the snotty waitress cut her off with a scoff and a sickening smile.

“Your boyfriend already paid for yours, _ honey _ .” 

She was about ready to throw hands with the girl at the nickname she’d been given, but the rest of her statement was more peculiar than the insult. She was clearly taken aback. 

“Excuse me? My b-boyf…?”

The waitress jerked her thumb in the direction of the large glass door. Outside, Luke was sitting on a bench while Alex and Reggie were pretending to fight. Her face instantly turned beet red. 

“Uh, we’re just- um.” 

Julie attempted to stutter out an explanation.

“Is there  _ anything else _ I can help you with?” The waitress demanded, crossing her arms over her chest. 

With that, Julie shook her head and nearly ran out the door to meet her friends. Alex saw her first and immediately stopped whatever he was doing with Reggie. He was ready to get out of here, apparently. The gang piled into the Mercer-mobile, as Luke lovingly named it, and took off. The car ride was filled with laughter and stupid jokes as Alex asked who lived closer and who he should drop off first. 

“Well, if Luke is going to hide out in the studio again tonight, I imagine we should be dropped off first,” Julie suggested. 

She hoped Luke would take the open invitation so that she could talk to him. Assuming that the waitress’s snotty attitude had something to do with one of the guys playing her tab, it had to have been him. He was the only one that knew, and it was clear that the other girl was pissed about it. 

“If you’ll have me.” Luke shrugged. 

“Then I guess the Molina residence is first on the list,” Alex assumed and started heading in that direction. 

Luke made a suggestion to drop Julie off at her house, and then to drive a couple hundred feet down the road before he would leave the car. He wasn’t about to get caught by Julie’s dad today, especially after the thoughts he’d been having lately. Everyone agreed and they eventually came up on the street where she lived. The car came to a stop and Julie said her goodbye’s to everyone except Luke, who she’d be seeing momentarily anyways. As she got out of the car, she made her way to the front door of her house. She poked her head inside to see her dad at his desk, tapping furiously away at his laptop. 

“Hey dad, I’m home! I’ll be in the studio for a little bit.” 

He looked up at her over the rim of his glasses and smiled. He gave a small nod and mentioned something about leftovers in the fridge if she was hungry. 

Julie darted back to the studio right on time to see Luke creeping through the bushes to avoid being seen. He spotted her and stood up straight, following her towards the studio. 

“So, you’ll never guess what happened at the burger shack earlier.” 

Luke was confused and slightly intrigued. 

“What’s that?” 

“The waitress told me that my  _ boyfriend  _ paid for my tab. Any idea who that could be?” 

She was playing coy and he knew it. He was too flustered to call her out on it, though. The idea of being referred to as her boyfriend was enough to drive him crazy. He didn’t even know how to explain himself. 

“Well, I just- Jules, I wasn’t trying to offend you or anything, I was- um, I just-,” he attempted to stutter out a response. 

He didn’t even  _ think  _ about the fact that paying for her food may be overstepping. They were just friends, and he doesn’t know if she would consider them  _ good  _ friends. His thoughts were racing at a mile a minute, how could he have missed that what he did was too much? What was he thinking? What was he- 

His thoughts were interrupted. 

Julie stopped right outside the studio doors and got close to him. She stood on her tiptoes as Luke stuttered and planted a kiss on his cheek. His eyes went wide and his face broke out in a red color as he was silenced. 

“Thank you, Luke.” 

Her voice was just above a whisper as she wrapped her arms around his torso. He embraced her instinctively, his muscle memory reacting faster than his brain. They stood there for a few moments, just holding each other. She was so thankful for his small act of kindness. She really felt as if these boys have already begun to change her life for the better. 

  
  



	12. Take Cover

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A smaller chapter to get a look at Alex's day. We finally get to see what goes on inside Alex's head, and introduce another important character <3 TW: rough family life, homophobic bullshit on his parents' end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! I hope that last long chapter fulfilled you all because this one isn't even half of that :/// buuut thats ok because now we finally get to see some Willex fluff and wholesomeness ;A; I hope you guys are having a lovely February so far, I got hit with some inspiration so I'll be drafting and brainstorming this weekend for chapter 13 :DDDD 
> 
> Happy Valentine's day to you guys, I hope it's filled with love and happiness c:

The guys were all incredibly proud of themselves for the show they put on for their class. It had been a while since Sunset Curve had performed, and they could all feel it. Reggie was more spastic than usual when there was a longer waiting period than preferred. He’s been bouncing off the walls since they learned that they’d be playing in front of their class. Luke couldn’t keep his head on straight. Not only was he usually terrible about forgetting any and everything, but he would also get terrible writer’s block. 

Usually, the guys all worked on the songs together. They’d bounce ideas off of each other and look for replacement words if something didn’t fit quite right, but it was mostly Luke. He was the lyrical genius behind most of Sunset Curve’s greatest hits. Alex and Reggie could both admit that they weren’t the most inspired individuals when it came to writing songs, but that’s what made them all a great team. Lately, though, Luke was working non-stop with Julie, not that either of them minded nor would they admit to that. 

Alex was affected in a different way: he couldn’t find it in him to sit still. That’s where he was left in his current predicament on the day before their performance- in his political science class, bouncing his knee up and down like a mad man. It wasn’t really anxiety-driven, surprisingly, but being a drummer meant content physical movement. He was definitely jonesing for a fix, to say the least. He was hoping his movement wasn’t too distracting, the last thing he wanted was to bring more attention to himself. He found himself a little lost in his thoughts before his teacher snapped him out of it. 

“Mr. Mercer.” 

A skinny older man stood at the front of the room, clearly not pleased. Thick framed glasses sat on the bridge of his nose, hiding some of the sunken-in features on his face. He wore the same kind of outfit every day: an ironed button down, brown or black slacks, and dress shoes. His arms were crossed as he waited. Alex’s head shot up at the sound of his name. The teacher didn’t wait for a verbal response from him. 

“If you could control your  _ distraction _ , please.” He stated.

It sounded the furthest from a request and more like a demand. The drummer quickly put two and two together as he glanced down at his bouncing knee and back to the teacher, giving a curt nod. The teacher returned it as he pursed his lips, continuing his explanation about the difference between political policies in the United States versus the ones in Europe. 

Alex let out a quiet, yet irritated sigh. Bouncing his leg was mindless to him anymore, but now he had to focus his attention on  _ not  _ doing it instead of listening to his crotchety teacher. While focusing on his lack of leg movement, he failed to notice the boy seated next to him, who was clearly intrigued and concerned. 

“Are you doing ok over there?” A voice whispered.

He looked toward the direction it came from to finally notice the boy. He had long, wavy brown hair that looked like it’s been cared for by a professional stylist every single day. His face carried high cheek bones and nearly flawless olive colored skin. He had rich, dark brown eyes that he imagined could tell stories like no other. All in all, the boy was  _ beautiful. _ Alex couldn’t recall the last time he wanted to describe a guy as such, but it fit him perfectly. 

“Uh, y-yeah. Just um, really invested in foreign policy,” he stuttered. 

Had he not been so flustered, that may have been an attempt at a joke. Either way, the stunning boy next to him snickered quietly, to prevent from being caught. The boy returned his attention to the front of the room, and Alex followed suit. He faked it very nicely, but couldn’t get the new mystery guy out of his mind. Had he ever paid attention during roll call, he might have picked up the boy’s name. 

“I’m Willie, by the way.” He whispered, as if reading his mind.

He must’ve been able to read him like a book. And for that, he was thankful. It was nice to put a name to a face. 

“Alex,” he muttered, nodding a greeting.

“Nice to meet you, Alex. Or should I just call you Mr. Mercer?” He teased. 

_ You can call me whatever you want, honestly. _

His cheeks developed a nice pink color. He almost physically shook his head at his own intrusive thought. Had he spoken that out loud, he would’ve jumped off of the nearest building with no second guesses. 

“Likewise,” he replied, offering a small smile, which Willie gladly returned. 

The two boys forced themselves to turn their attention back to the political lecture they were getting, but it didn’t last for very long. Alex found himself sneaking glances at the model-like boy whenever he could, and he could’ve sworn that he saw Willie doing the same thing. His eyes must’ve been playing tricks on him, surely. By the time class ended, Willie was already packing his notebooks back into his bag and getting ready to leave. Alex still had shit sprawled all over the desk. He rushed to cram things into his own bag, very much wanting to walk out of class with Willie and talk with him some more. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the long-haired boy getting up to leave. A strangled noise came out of his throat and he hoped it was quiet enough that Willie didn’t hear him. 

As he stressed and scrambled, he failed to notice the other boy get close to his desk. He slapped a folded up piece of paper on the surface, causing Alex to look at it, then up at him. 

“Here’s my number, in case you want to bore someone with your intense interest in  _ political science _ .” He said, obviously laughing at what seemed to be their new inside joke. 

Alex could barely stutter out a response as the other boy winked at him and left, leaving him speechless yet again. He quickly grabbed the paper and stuffed it in his pocket. It felt like it weighed a thousand pounds while simultaneously burning a hole in said pocket, but he felt as light as a feather. He would later find himself sitting in the library, unfolding the paper and folding it back again, just to make sure it was really there.

\---

Alex spent the rest of the day and the following morning of their performance texting his new friend, once he finally got the balls to do it. He kept kicking himself and contemplating back and forth, trying to decide if Willie even wanted to be  _ bothered _ right now. Maybe he was busy? Maybe he was hanging out with friends, or a significant other. Now, Alex wasn’t the kind of guy to feed into the heteronormative stereotypes of another’s sexuality, but there’s no way in hell that Willie  _ wasn’t  _ attracted to men. If anything, maybe he played for both teams? He based this theory solely on their initial interactions and the fact that most high school boys weren’t confident enough in their own masculinity to appear as soft-spoken and gentle as Willie.

Most guys would probably flip the fuck out at the thought of wearing the color pink, which happened to be the color of his favorite hoodie. Gay or not, pink was a good color on him and he would fight his own mother if he had to. He had before, actually. Finally, though, he gathered up the courage to text him.

_ hey, its Alex :)  _

He tapped a random beat on his leg while he waited for a response. What if Willie gave him the wrong number? He didn’t take him to be the type to do that, but maybe he wrote down the wrong number on accident? Or maybe Alex read it wrong. No, that was stupid. Willie’s handwriting was nearly as gorgeous as he was. Every number looked as if it was carved into a granite slab, each line carrying its own precision of perfection. It could’ve given a few fonts a run for their money. Alex’s phone buzzed on the table, nearly jolting the life out of him as he was inspecting the phone number again.

_ Hey Mercer, I was wondering when you were finally going to text me. _

He smiled at the simple nickname. It wasn’t  _ really _ a nickname, considering it was his own last name, but he liked being called that by him. It seemed almost caring. The two wove in and out of various conversations from the chatty kids in their political science class, to their interests and music tastes. Willie went into vivid detail about how much he loved skateboarding and the thrill that came with it. One of his favorite pastimes was skating around people at parks, particularly when busy. He teetered on the idea of skating in and out of traffic, but it seemed so risky sometimes. Alex matched his excited rambling by talking about the artists that inspired him to learn how to play the drums, including but not limited to Arctic Monkeys, Pixies, Nirvana, and his long-time drummer idol, Rick Allen of Def Leppard. 

The mention of music brought up the fact that he was  _ in  _ a band, in fact. He told Willie all about Sunset Curve and his friendship with the guys. He briefly mentioned that his two friends, who were basically his brothers at this point, had saved him more than they could ever know. He stopped his rambling at that point. He had just met the guy, he wasn’t about to bring up his metaphorical scars. He knew he had a bad habit of over-sharing, and this often led to talking about his mental health and homelife. He pushed that to the backburner in his mind.

When Alex got up that morning, the first thing he did was check his phone. The clock read 5:36am- he was up before the sun, as per usual. He scrolled through a few notifications, but landed on one and paused. It was a text message.

_ You’re gonna kill it today, Mercer. (: _

He smiled. It was from Willie. He remembered telling him about their performance today, and that it was the reason why he couldn’t sit still in class. He didn’t expect him to text him about it, though. Hell, he hardly expected him to  _ remember _ . With a yawn and a stretch, Alex eventually rolled out of bed and crept around his room, careful to avoid the floorboard that creaks.

He used to be the kind of guy that could sleep in until 3pm, only waking up when someone disturbed him, but that has since changed. He’s usually out of the house before his parents are awake, and he does it on purpose. Ever since he came out to them, home has been very different for him. It wasn’t really even  _ home _ anymore, and he certainly didn’t feel like he had a family outside of Luke and Reggie. If anything, he was just a tenant.

\---

_ Alex had been hanging out with Luke and Reggie all day, getting into all sorts of stupid antics as per usual. He didn’t get home until nearly 10pm that night, which wasn’t usually too frowned upon. It was a Saturday, so there weren’t any responsibilities he had to take care of the following day. He came in through the front door and locked it behind him, being greeted by his parents who were watching reruns of some late night comedy show. _

_ “Hi, honey. Dinner’s on the stove if you want any, but it’s gotten cold by now,” his mother said. _

_ He nodded and rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet. _

_ “Oh- uh, I’m not hungry. Thanks, Mom.” He answered. _

_ He was nervous. He’d found an excuse to get out of the house, because if he didn’t, he felt like he was going to have an existential crisis. Alex had been wanting to come out to his parents for a while now, but he was terrified of how they’d take it. His parents were avidly religious and reminded him of that nearly every day. He was about 14 when he told them he didn’t want to go to church with them anymore. It took a few days of back and forth bickering before his parents finally gave in, though. He relayed this information to Luke and Reggie the second he met up with them. The other two boys took it upon themselves to cheer their friend up and get him out of his own head for a while. _

_ He let out a sigh before opening his mouth. _

Now or never, _ he thought. _

_ “Mom, Dad? Can I talk to you guys about something?” He asked, standing behind the smaller couch that they hadn’t been sitting on.  _

_ It was almost like a barrier between him and his parents. His mother straightened her posture as his father turned the volume on the TV down.  _

_ “Of course, son. Is everything alright?” His dad asked. _

_ He nodded and kept his eyes on the floor as he spoke. _

_ “Well, you know how- how I’ve never really had a girlfriend before?” He started. _

_ He wasn’t exactly sure  _ how  _ to say it. He figured the best way would be to figure out a way to lighten the blow, maybe. At the time, it seemed like a good idea, but anymore he felt that it was just a waste of time and they would’ve reacted the same anyways. His dad chuckled at first. _

_ “Alex, if this is you telling us that you knocked some poor girl up, your picture is going to be plastered on the back of every milk carton in the city.” _

_ He let out a nervous huff of laughter and shook his head. _

_ “Um, it’s not that, actually. I uh…” He trailed off. _

_ His mom placed her hand on her husband’s knee as she looked to her son for answers. Being an only child, Alex always felt like they expected him to be the perfect son. _

_ “What is it, honey?” His mom encouraged. _

_ “I don’t think I like girls.” He deadpanned.  _

_ His parents were stunned for a moment. He was afraid of this. At the time, he may have preferred someone to laugh, scream at him,  _ something,  _ but this was torture. He didn’t know what his parents were going to do, what they were going to say. _

_ “You don’t like gi-... You mean, you’re  _ gay _? _ ”  _ His mother tried. _

_ Alex let out a shaky breath as he could feel fresh tears start to sting at the corners of his eyes. He hesitated, but eventually nodded. His mother almost gasped as she tried to compose herself. _

_ “Honey I-,” she tried. “I don’t know if we can accept that. What would the  _ church _ think? God still loves you and so do w-” _

_ His father cut her off. _

_ “God doesn’t condone that kind of  _ sin _ and frankly, neither do we. This is a Christian family and if you don’t want to be a part of that, that’s on you. This is certainly not how we raised you, Alexander! No son of mine is  _ like that _.” _

_ His father’s tone was stern and angry. Both Alex and his mother were speechless. He didn’t really know what to expect from them, but he was hoping that they wouldn’t yell at him. Tears were streaming down his face at this point. He took this as a sign to get up and take cover in his room. He felt embarrassed, humiliated, and unwanted. He wanted this night to end, and he didn’t want to encounter his father anymore. He was scared that he would be kicked out. _

_ Since then, his relationship with his parents had never been the same. His mom tried to be somewhat understanding at first, but after a while, she fell into the same routine as his dad. He assumed it was just easier for his parents to hate him than to deal with it. _

\---

Alex made it to school before the rest of the band did. The building was still practically empty, minus a few students coming in for morning tutoring lessons and a handful of teachers getting an early start on the day. He made his way to the library with roughly 30 minutes to spare before he was due to meet up with his friends. He figured this would be a good time to finally reply to the good luck text he’d received this morning.

_ thank you :) i’ll tell you about it in poli sci _

It wasn’t much, but it was enough to make him smile when he thought about it. He began to wonder why Willie was up as early as he was, if not earlier. His mind drifted to anything and everything about this new person in his life. His day dreaming lasted long enough for Reggie to summon his presence with a jokingly-irritated text asking where he was.


	13. Perfect Harmony

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke and Julie have become very comfortable with teasing and causing hell for each other. Both of them have dreams about the other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A wise man once told me, sometimes you gotta cause the characters you love some pain just because you love them. <3

After the night out at the burger shack with the guys, Julie was dead tired. Thankfully it was Wednesday, so the week was half over. Getting through the first half was the biggest challenge for her most of the time, but Thursday and Friday seemed so much easier. Teachers were more laid back with homework, there were less assignments, and almost no tests. She and Luke made their way inside the studio that night, having promised a quick brainstorming session. 

She took a seat in the piano bench, facing away from the large instrument as Luke took his usual place on the couch. She was still flustered at the recent memory of him paying for her food and at the comments made by the waitress. 

“You know what that waitress said to me?” Julie prompted.

Luke propped the back of his head up on his arms as he moved around to get comfortable.

“What’s that?” 

She wanted to tell him how the girl had referred to him as her  _ boyfriend.  _ Her face flushed at the idea of it. She’s been spending more time with Luke lately, she noted. The other guys were there too, of course. Her thoughts must’ve taken her to another realm because Luke spoke again, impatiently waiting on her answer. 

“She probably told you that the group of guys you were with were some of the most good looking dudes she’d ever seen.” He boasted.

Julie let out a scoff as she was jerked back to reality.

“You know, I think that waitress was a little  _ too  _ interested in you. Maybe she’s a stalker.” She teased.

“Really? No way.” 

She giggled. Sometimes, she could swear that Luke was the most oblivious of the group. 

“Are you serious? She was practically giving you  _ bedroom eyes _ , Luke.”

He tried to feign a smirk, but the back of his neck turning red gave him away. He was clearly embarrassed by her comment. He cleared his throat and quickly recovered. 

“I think you’re just jealous of another girl’s attention.” He quipped.

Julie laughed out loud at that, but her face soon matched the color of his neck. 

“ _ Jealous? _ That’s a good one, you must have me confused with someone else.” She paused to regain her composure. “I’ll bet you anything she wrote her number down.” 

A curious look overcame Luke’s face. He eyed Julie for another moment before reaching into his pocket to fish out the receipt. He unfolded it and saw numbers and letters scribbled in purple pen. 

_ Chelsea 842-7660 xo  _

He quickly crumbled it and tried to shove it right back into his pocket. Julie caught on to what he was doing and lunged at him, reaching for the receipt. 

“Lemme see it!” She squealed, doing everything in her power to loosen his composure.

He practically skipped around the studio, trying to avoid her. She stood on one side of the couch as he stood on the opposite side, lurching forward to go in one direction only to trick him and go in the other. She made her way back to him and attempted to distract him in any way she could think of. Her fingers made their way to his sides as they danced across his skin. He giggled as he tried to escape her grasp.

They managed to make their way towards the couch, where the momentum of her violent tickling caused Luke to topple over, Julie following in suit. He laid on his side, trying to protect himself from her wrath as she straddled his sideways form. Had they not been fighting over a piece of scrap paper, they may have noticed the situation they were in. Eventually, she managed to snag the flimsy piece of paper out of his hands.

“Ha! Got it!” She exclaimed, climbing off of him and strolling around the couch as she read. 

“Ooh,  _ Chelsea _ , huh? Maybe you should give her a call.” She teased. 

Luke jumped up from the couch and chased after her, trying to grab it back from her. She stretched her arm out, far enough to get her point across but close enough where he could still get it. He sighed and backed up. 

“Jules, give it back,” he sighed. 

“Why, you wanna call her right now?” 

Julie had that familiar shit-eating grin on her face. She was up to something for sure. 

“No, Julie, I don’t even plan on contacting that girl. Would you just give it ba-“

“Why’s that? Got your eye on  _ someone else? _ ” She teased, practically dancing in front of him. 

He turned bright red and found himself having difficulties swallowing. He gulped as he looked for something to say, nearly coming up blank. His brain was half-functioning, and his mouth wasn’t doing much better. His attempt to stutter out a response was less than impressive, and he’s sure that it wasn’t nearly as convincing as he would’ve liked.

“Look, I- uh, that’s not what I meant-.”

She jokingly whacked him in the chest and held the receipt out for him to grab. She was very close in his personal bubble, this was something they both acknowledged. 

“Relax, Luke. I’m just kidding.”

He looked down at the receipt for a beat longer than he should’ve, slowly inching his hand towards it. Part of him wanted to see if she was going to snatch it from him again, and part of him didn’t want her to step away. He made the mistake of looking at her, only to see that she was already looking right back. Looking into each other’s eyes was a dangerous game. In his eyes, she could practically see into his soul. She could see how many times he’d been hurt by those around him and how scared he was to make himself vulnerable. In her eyes, he could see personified warmth. Being around Julie was like being wrapped up in your favorite sweater on a cold winter morning, drinking hot cocoa. It was safe, it was protected. It almost felt like  _ home.  _

The two didn’t know how long they had been standing there, lost in their own worlds, but eventually Luke broke eye contact. He cleared his throat and mumbled something resembling a  _ thank you _ .

“So, uh, you wanna work on some lyrics for a bit?” He offered, stuffing his hands in his pockets. 

He felt awkward for a moment. He wondered if she did, too. She personally felt a wave of exhaustion come over her as she let out a yawn. She stretched for a second with a groan before straightening out.

“If I can keep my eyes open. It’s getting pretty late.”

Julie flopped right onto the couch as Luke paced back and forth with a notebook in hand, mumbling words to himself, only stopping to scratch something out. She was slipping in and out of consciousness as he began humming. The quiet noise was starting to lull her to sleep. Her eyes closed for a few moments.

“Jules, what do you think about this line?”

She could barely make out the sound of his rhythmic voice, but she grumbled a gibberish reply as she fought to open her eyes again. As her eyes fell shut for the final time, she could’ve sworn she saw Luke looking at her before she knocked out. He had his guitar on his lap and began strumming a few light chords. 

“Step into my world…” he sang 

\---

_ She was in the dance studio. There were other students around her: the partnered up pairs for the now-co-ed class. It was quiet for a moment, but only to her. The students around her were talking and laughing, but she couldn’t hear them. She started to turn around, noticing the absence of her own partner. She had been paired with Nick. As she spun around, she was met with a mirror instead. After a brief moment, it was no longer a mirror, but almost a window. A familiar male form appeared, she expected it to be her missing partner, but it wasn’t. He had voluminous chestnut colored hair that was slicked back out of his face. He wore a crisp white button down shirt and ironed black dress pants. He was walking closer to her. As he neared, she recognized him.  _

_ Luke.  _

_ She took a moment to look down at herself and see that she was dressed up just as proper as he was. She tried to open her mouth and ask where Nick was, but no words would come out. An unfamiliar beat began to play as he stepped out of the mirror.  _

  
  


_ Step into my world _

_ Bittersweet love story about a girl  _

_ Shook me to the core  _

_ Voice like an angel, I’ve never heard before  _

_ He stepped closer to her, holding his hands out in front of him. She hesitated, but reluctantly placed her hands in his. When their fingers met, a jolt of electricity surged through her body. Luke dipped her back and pulled her close to him again before spinning her around. _

_ Here in front of me  _

_ Shining so much brighter than I have ever seen  _

_ Life can be so mean  _

_ But when he goes, I know he doesn’t leave  _

_ Her back was to his chest as she sang and she pushed and pulled her arms away from herself. He mimicked her movements before picking her up, holding her close to himself, and spinning the both of them around. _

_ The truth is finally breaking through _

_ Two worlds collide when I’m with you _

_ Our voices rise and soar so high _

_ We come to life when we’re in perfect harmony _

_ The two spun round and round, coming back to each other every time. Luke knelt down on one knee as Julie twirled. They both sang lyrics that neither of them remember, but they certainly knew them. She made her way back to him once again as he wrapped his arms around her, still kneeling, and lifting her up. The way they danced felt like something pulled from  _ The Titanic _. _

_ You set me free _

_ You and me together is more than chemistry _

_ Love me as I am _

_ I’ll hold your music here inside my hands _

_ Julie lifted her hands up as Luke’s fingers traced up her arms, intertwining their fingers when he reached the top. He wrapped his arms around her as she lay her head to the side, exposing her neck. He planted a single, feather-light kiss on the exposed skin. _

_ We say we’re friends, we play pretend _

_ You’re more to me, you’re everything _

_ Our voices rise and soar so high _

_ We come to life when we’re in perfect harmony _

_ The music in the room died down after a while, leaving the two standing as close together as they could. Their bodies were pressed against each other, both able to feel the other’s sporadic heartbeat. With their hands clasped tightly together, they got lost in each other’s eyes. Julie fell into a world of warmth, laughter and feeling protected. Her subconscious mind noted that this was how she always felt around him. Luke fell into a realm that felt soft and precious, like a valuable gemstone or something equally irreplaceable.  _

  
  


\---

  
  


It wasn’t long after Julie fell asleep that he found himself feeling tired, too. It was definitely a long day, to say the least. He had been trying to keep himself awake by strumming and practicing as quietly as he could without disturbing the girl passed out on the couch. His eyes would drift to her every once in a while. At once point, she shifted her position a little bit and a small smile appeared on her face. Luke wondered what she was dreaming about. 

He finally gave in and succumbed to the weight of his eyelids, making himself comfortable against a bean bag chair that Julie relocated from her room. As he drifted into unconsciousness, his mind was filled with peaceful memories of the girl with him. Between her and his friends, his life had been pretty alright lately. He didn’t know what he would do or where he would be without them.

_ Probably dead in a ditch somewhere, _ his mind suggested.

\---

_ Luke found himself in a pitch black room. There was no light, no trace of another human being. Nothing. He frantically searched for anything around him when suddenly a door appeared. He approached it cautiously, but held himself back from wanting to mindlessly run to it and escape this weird realm he’d been plunged into. He gently turned the doorknob and opened it, stepping into yet another room. As he looked around, the surroundings seemed oddly familiar. _

_ There was a laundry basket filled with faded t-shirts and button down flannels sitting in front of a beaten up desk and chair. On the walls, clearer images of band posters and musicians like Kurt Cobain, Red Hot Chili Peppers and The Foo Fighters began to show. A messy, unmade bed lay in the middle of the room. He recognized this room. It was  _ his _. _

_ He tiptoed around, looking at all of his things. It had been a while since he’d been home. He wasn’t entirely sure if he considered this place to be home anymore, honestly. He began rummaging through his things before being interrupted by the sound of a voice. _

_ His heart nearly stopped. That voice was all too familiar. _

_ “Luke! Luke, are you in there?”  _

Mom.

_ His brain seemed to have separated itself into a million pieces before reconstructing itself to come up with a solution. His mother started knocking on the bedroom door, repeating her question. He looked around him, trying to find a way out. There was a window in his bedroom, but it appeared to be boarded up by old wood and rusted nails. That was certainly new. He looked back at the door that he came out of, and saw that it was just his closet. That wouldn’t really do him much good. _

_ He sighed before making his way over to the door, where his mother was still repeatedly knocking. His heart was racing as he placed his hand on the doorknob, delicately turning the little little piece of brass to unlock it. Luke slowly turned the knob, but decided to say ‘screw it’, and yanked the door open quickly, like ripping off a bandaid. On the other side of the door, there was no one. His mind began to process a thousand questions. He stepped out into the hallway, noticing that the air in the house became freezing cold. In places where furniture used to be, there were indents in the carpets and shadows on the walls. The walls and carpets were much more gray and muted than he remembered. _

_ “Mom?” He called out. _

_ He heard the distant sounds of muffled voices from downstairs. He crept down the stairs as slowly and silently as possible, not wanting to give away his presence. He mentally cursed himself as he forgot about the third stair from the bottom that  _ always _ creaked. His head shot up as he looked around the kitchen, seeing people turned away from him. They turned at the sound of the creaking step. It was his parents. They looked as if they hadn’t slept in days. _

_ “Luke, we need to talk.” His mother said, crossing her arms. _

_ “Mom, I know I haven’t been home-” he started, immediately trying to apologize for his lack of presence lately.  _

_ She cut him off. _

_ “You don’t even speak to us anymore. You don’t even leave your room. I don’t even get to know if my son is home anymore.” _

_ He was confused. His parents knew that he left, it wasn’t exactly a secret. He’d been ignoring their calls and texts, avoiding coming home and even avoiding the grocery stores that he knew his parents frequented. His dad then spoke up. _

_ “Son, this is a problem.” _

_ “Guys, I haven’t even been home. What are you talking about?” He interrogated. _

_ It seemed like his parents couldn’t hear him. Or even if they could, they just weren’t  _ listening. _ That wasn’t a new feeling. He constantly felt like his parents intentionally weren’t hearing what he had to say.  _

_ “You’re nothing but a burden to this family, Luke. You need to leave.” _

_ A _ burden _? _

_ He felt his entire body go cold. Words wouldn’t form, he couldn’t get any noise to come out of his mouth. He looked around him and saw a familiar duffel bag and a backpack. They were stuffed with what he assumed to be his belongings. The only thing missing was his guitar. They looked like the exact same ones he took with him the first night he took shelter in Julie’s garage. Finally, his mouth and brain made a connection as he tried to speak again.  _

_ “Mom, Dad, I don’t understand, what’s going-“ _

_ Another figure stepped out of the shadows of the poorly lit kitchen. The figure was petite, almost dainty, and had large, curly hair. She was wearing something very familiar: one of his favorite flannels. He could’ve sworn he saw that one upstairs in the laundry basket.  _

_ Julie.  _

_ He once again tried to speak, praying to anything and everything listening that his mouth could function properly again. He got lucky.  _

_ “Julie, what are you doing here?” He asked, stepping closer to her.  _

_ His words were so quiet, he was scared she might not have heard him. She matched his movements, closing the distance between them step by step until they were barely an arms-reach away. She was quiet and her face lacked the usual glow it had. Sure, this was Julie, but it didn’t  _ feel  _ like his Julie. He attempted to reach out to touch her arm, but his fingers passed right through her. His eyes widened in shock, which quickly turned to fear.  _

_ “You need to  _ leave,  _ Luke.”  _

_ Her voice was cold and her statement was emphasized. Each word felt like he was being stabbed directly in the heart with an icicle.  _

_ “Julie, what are you-?” He tried, reaching for her again, but failing. “Julie-... Jules, please.”  _

_ He begged and pleaded as his fingers failed to grasp onto her. He looked around him to find his parents again, who were walking back into the shaded corners of the house, into the darkness. He turned back to Julie, whose expression hadn’t changed. He felt tears start to sting at his eyes. As he searched her face for any sign of his friend, he noticed the colors of her began to fade. She was fading away, almost like a memory.  _

_ “Julie? Please don’t go, please! Jules!” _

_ He launched himself toward where she was standing, but nothing stopped his path to the floor. As he landed on the cold floor, he looked around him once again and saw nothing. He curled up into a fetal position as the tears finally spilled over. The only sound he could hear was his own mumbling.  _

_ “Julie… Julie…” _

_ —-  _

He shot up with a startled gasp. It was still dark out, probably around 5am. He was face to face with the girl he’d been frantically searching for. She had a very concerned look on her face. She heard him calling her name, panicked. Her mouth was moving, but he was too dazed to hear her. He reached up and wiped the sweat off of his forehead. He felt a hand on his arm. He looked up again to an even more concerned expression. 

Without being able to help himself, he reached up once again and placed a hand on Julie’s face, caressing it with his thumb. She moved her hand and replaced it on top of his. Without a second thought, he wrapped an arm around the girl and pulled her onto him, hugging her tightly. His eyes shut as a tear dropped down his face. She returned the force of the hug, wrapping her arms around his form as tightly as she could. She could hear the boy she was tangled up with quietly sniffling. She brought a hand up to his head and combed his hair with her fingers over and over again, hoping to calm him down. 

“It’s ok, Luke. You’re ok, I’m right here.”

A whimper came from him in response. She shushed him and whispered comforting words as his grip slowly loosened on her. Eventually, they both fell back asleep in each other’s arms, propped up against the beanbag.

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Hi! So this is my first fic for Julie and the Phantoms. I recently binge watched JATP and I can't get the chemistry of the characters out of my head, so here we go :D this is very much an alternate universe because the boys aren't dead and they weren't Sunset Curve in 1995. But they're gonna be around in 2020 soooo yeah! Thanks for reading


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